December 12, 2024

Dear Educator,

Two years ago, we launched a team to co-design the Profile of a Learner with Muhlenberg County Schools, a rural district in Kentucky. It has created momentum in the community and a shared language in the vision for learners. They have used language to recognize learners, deepen their teaching practice, and launched a defense of learning to ensure learners are taking ownership of their learning.

My Bright Spot this week is how the community is working to outline their big moves to bring the profile to life over the next five years.

With Gratitude,

Co-Designing a Blueprint for Success

To continue bringing the Profile of a Learner to life, we are aligning strategies and resources to ensure distributed leadership opportunities. A team of teachers, principals, and central office leaders are collaborating to deepen their understanding of the district vision, imagine what is possible within their learning community, and co-design their Blueprint for Success.

The Blueprint for Success will lay out the desired outcomes, success metrics, and big moves they need to make over the next five years to bring their learner-centered vision to life. Seeing their big ideas converge during our most recent time together was exciting!

This partnership ensures that the Blueprint reflects the needs and aspirations of the entire school community by tapping into the unique expertise of educators at every level. From the classroom to district leadership, this collective approach exemplifies how co-creation fosters innovation, ownership, and sustainable change.

One educator said, "As a mom and an educator, I want my kids to have the skills and opportunities to do anything they want," and this process made her excited for the possibility that their vision would allow kids to achieve their dreams without having to leave their community. Education is personal, and to do work that helps communities personalize it is priceless.

Stay tuned for more updates as we continue this exciting journey, empowering leaders and learners alike in Muhlenberg County!

In what ways is your learning community setting itself up for success to realize its learner-centered vision? Where might you be running into challenges? Let us know by replying directly to this email :)

Measure what matters and tell a powerful story in your school or district

Our Scorecard Guide introduces a powerful tool for measuring and communicating educational progress beyond traditional metrics, aligned with whole-learner outcomes in a learner-centered paradigm. This guide provides a comprehensive framework for designing, implementing, and leveraging Scorecards to drive continuous improvement, engage stakeholders, and tell your school or district's unique story of success.

Resources to advance your learner-centered practice

📖 In a Learner-Centered Community, We Are All Communicators. "Through transparency, feedback loops, and storytelling, we can amplify student voice and build shared vision." Read more from Marlon Styles.

🎯 Student-Led Advisory Councils and Boards. "Asking students their opinions about decisions that affect them in their school community is a great place to start listening to learners. However, taking it a step further puts students at the decision-making table." Learn how.

👩‍💻 Learner-Centered Leadership for Meaningful Change. "Define who you are as a learner-centered leader, explore ways to build relationships with your team by building relational trust, and leverage a human-centered design process to create a proposal for change." Transform your leadership.