An Exploration into the Viability of the
Implementation of an Educational Innovation
Cluster in the Atlanta Public Schools
Final Report
THE METROPOLITAN CENTER FOR RESEARCH
ON EQUITY AND THE TRANSFORMATION OF SCHOOLS
December 2013
M et ropolit an Cent er f or Res earc h on Equit y and t he Transf orm a t ion of Sc hools
726 Broad wa y, 5t h Floor | New York , NY 10003 -6680
212 998 5100 | f ax 212 995 4199 | www. s t einhardt . nyu. edu/m et roc ent er
Acknowledgments
This data-gathering project was made possible, in the summer of 2013, by the development and
funding of three members of the Atlanta Placed-Based Funders network, a consortium of funders
who have committed to long-term support of neighborhoods. These three funders recently
pledged to work together to improve education outcomes across a cluster in the Atlanta Public
Schools:
1. Annie E. Casey Foundation Atlanta Civic Site
2. United Way of Greater Atlanta
3. Zeist Foundation
This initiative was motivated by the desire to collaborate on an education project that included a
pipeline of both traditional feeder schools and charter schools that flowed into an APS high
school, namely Maynard Jackson HS, as well as the early learning centers that served this cluster
of schools.
Traditional Schools
Maynard Jackson High School
Coan Middle School
Burgess Peterson Academy
Toomer Elementary
Whitefoord Elementary
King Middle School
Benteen Elementary
D.H. Stanton Elementary
Dunbar Elementary
Parkside Elementary
Alternative School
Alonzo Crim Open Campus High School – students from across the APS district
Charter Schools
Drew Charter School – Pre-K through 12th grade
Atlanta Neighborhood Charter School – K–8th grade
Wesley International Academy – K–8th grade
Early Learning Centers
Elizabeth Burch Early Learning Center
Sheltering Arms sites
Dorothy Arkwright
Dunbar Educare
East Lake Villages
Whitefoord Child Development Center
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Executive Summary
3
Introduction
5
Brief History of Jackson Cluster
5
Jackson Cluster Student Data
6
Purpose of Project
14
Data Collection Process
15
Core Innovation Pillars for Establishing an Innovative Maynard Jackson Cluster
17
Core Innovation Pillar 1: Resolving Current Challenges that Hinder Innovation
18
Core Innovation Pillar 2: Creating a Birth-to-Career pipeline for all students
21
Core Innovation Pillar 3: Developing a Comprehensive Family Engagement Strategy
25
Core Innovation Pillar 4: Model Replication
27
Core Innovation Pillar 5: Governance for empowering leadership
29
Core Innovation Pillar 6: Developing a cultural identity for innovation
34
Core Innovation Pillar 7: New Approach to Teaching and Learning
37
Recommendations for an Innovation Cluster Vision
39
References
44
The Metropolitan Center for Research on Equity and the Transformation of Schools
45
An Exploration into the Viability of an Educational Innovation Cluster
Executive Summary
K–12 institutions across the nation are striving to become innovative. The landscape of education
has drastically changed as a result of new ideas. However, most innovative thoughts still
primarily focus on the technological system as the stimulus for innovation, not the network of
people who use it. In the report that follows, you will read about the outcomes of a process that
perceived people as the catalyst for innovation, as opposed to glossy technological devices.
The NYU Metropolitan Center for Research on Equity and the Transformation of Schools in July
2013 partnered with three Atlanta Place Based Funders, Annie E. Casey Foundation Atlanta
Civic Site, United Way of Greater Atlanta, and the Zeist Foundation, to explore opportunities for
innovation within the Atlanta Public School system. The focus was on the entire Jackson Cluster
located in the eastern region of the Atlanta Public School District.
This report is a reflection of a collaborative, inclusive process facilitated through partnerships.
The underlying goal of the process was to gauge the level of interest and support for education
innovation from multiple stakeholders in the cluster. In efforts to learn about education
innovation, the essential question was to learn how all Jackson Cluster stakeholders would best
engage in education innovation. It was not about what (creating) is innovation, but who
(embracing) can facilitate innovation. The mission of the project was not to discover the next
initiative, but to develop stakeholder connections, which translated into alliances that gave birth
to true (relevant) innovation. This project emphasized thoughtful responsive protocols, strived
for transparency, embraced divergent perspectives, and engaged in continuous dialogue. It was a
broader, bolder approach to working with all stakeholders to strengthen innovation in education.
Our findings for improvement offer 7 Core Innovation Pillars that are critical for facilitating
innovation within the Jackson Cluster of the Atlanta Public School system:
Core Innovation Pillar 1: Resolving current challenges that hinder innovation. Innovation is
hampered by the charter–traditional school divide, lack of value placed on early learning, and
lack of common practices cluster-wide.
Core Innovation Pillar 2: Creating a Birth-to-Career pipeline for all students. Accelerating and
sustaining learning for all Maynard Jackson students requires a partnership with early learning
centers to support a seamless comprehensive birth-to-career education model.
Core Innovation Pillar 3: Developing a comprehensive family engagement strategy. The
families and communities of students in the Jackson Cluster must be treated as valued partners
who are provided with a holistic support system to assist in their support of the educational
development of students.
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An Exploration into the Viability of an Educational Innovation Cluster
Core Innovation Pillar 4: Stimulating replication through a long-term shared commitment for
innovation by collaboration. Replication within the Jackson Cluster is only sustainable if all
stakeholders commit to collaborating on a long-term vision.
Core Innovation Pillar 5: Governing that empowers leadership. The Jackson cluster can best
facilitate innovation using a decentralized decision-making governance structure that empowers
leadership.
Core Innovation Pillar 6: Establishing a cultural identity for innovation. All stakeholders would
support a Jackson Cluster identity that is data-driven and promotes empowerment, development,
collaboration, and community.
Core Innovation Pillar 7: Defining a cluster-wide approach to teaching and learning. Schools
should work on developing 21st-century strategies for teaching and learning that can be
customized to meet the needs within the cluster.
NYU Metro Center recommendations for an innovation cluster vision that responds to the 7 Core
Innovation Pillars within the Jackson Cluster are as follows:







Create an equitable culture across stakeholder groups by establishing a core set of shared
equity principles.
Promote the belief that the life-long successes of all children in the cluster are everyone’s
responsibility by establishing a birth-to-career model.
Adapt the practice of building stronger families in support of developing successful
students by establishing a comprehensive infrastructure and approach to engaging all
families.
Establish a cluster-wide governing structure that is nimble and empowers leadership to
lead innovation that is sustainable.
Cultivate a culture of learning utilizing a variety of professional learning communities
focused on specific school improvement issues.
Establish a shared cluster mission and vision that shifts the current paradigm for how all
stakeholders collaborate to support teaching and learning.
Facilitate the implementation of the following six innovation levers in support of
positive, sustainable change cluster-wide:
1. Empowered Leadership
2. Shared Vision
3. School-Based Governance
4. Family and Community-Centered
Environment
5. Professional Learning Communities
6. Long-Term Stakeholder
Commitment
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An Exploration into the Viability of an Educational Innovation Cluster
Introduction
In November 2012, the Atlanta Place-Based Funders Network convened at the Community
Foundation for Greater Atlanta for the first time in several years. The participants included
veteran place-based funders – Annie E. Casey Foundation Atlanta Civic Site, CF
Foundation/East Lake Foundation, and the Zeist Foundation – as well as funders exploring a
place-based strategy, namely the Arthur M. Blank Family Foundation, Chick-fil-A Foundation,
and the United Way of Greater Atlanta.
The meeting began with reports on the work that the respective funders have supported in their
target neighborhoods and schools and was followed by a recommendation that the funders
consider collaborating on the cluster level, especially since the funders were divided into two
Atlanta Public School (APS) clusters – Jackson Cluster and Washington Cluster.
Four months later, in March 2013, the Annie E. Casey Foundation Atlanta Civic Site, CF
Foundation/East Lake Foundation, and the Zeist Foundation met to discuss the cluster
collaboration and agreed that it was an idea worth pursuing.
The funding partners next drafted a request for proposals to secure a consultant that could work
with the funders and APS. At the end of the bidding process, the NYU Metropolitan Center for
Research on Equity and the Transformation of Schools was chosen in June 2013. At that point,
the United Way for Greater Atlanta expressed an interest in supporting the cluster work if it
included early learning (0–5 years). The other funders agreed that this was important to add on to
the scope of work and the United Way for Greater Atlanta joined the partnership.
Brief History of Jackson Cluster
The Jackson Cluster, a group of 14 schools in the APS system, is unique for two reasons: (1)
This cluster has the highest concentration of charter schools (three); (2) In addition to traditional
feeder schools and charter schools, the Jackson Cluster hosts the Alonzo Crim Open Campus
High School, a non-traditional school that draws students from across the entire city. (See
Appendix 1 for a map of the Jackson Cluster.)
When it was originally built in the 1980s, Maynard Holbrook Jackson HS was known as
Southside HS, but in 2008 APS renamed it to honor the legacy of the former City of Atlanta
Mayor. In August 2012, the Maynard Jackson HS students and staff were relocated to the Coan
MS building during an APS district-approved $40 million renovation of the high school building.
Although renovation was scheduled to be a one-year project, the Maynard Jackson HS students
and staff remained in the Coan MS building through December 2013, and Coan MS students and
staff are scheduled to return to the Coan MS building in June 2014.
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An Exploration into the Viability of an Educational Innovation Cluster
Meanwhile, the board of Drew Charter School, previously a K–8 school, held a ground breaking
ceremony in January 2013 to launch the building of their new Senior Academy to serve 6th–12th
grade students. Instead of waiting for this new building to be constructed, in the summer of 2013,
Drew Charter started its first 9th grade class, moving its 6th–9th graders into temporary space at
Kennedy MS. This temporary relocation allowed the number of K–5th grade slots at their existing
school to be increased, widening their pipeline for the new Senior Academy.
During this two-year period of cluster restructuring and school renovation (2011–2013), new,
experienced principals arrived in the cluster and made an immediate positive impact. These new
school leaders and their respective schools are: Stephanie Johnson – Maynard Jackson HS; Betsy
Bockman – Coan MS; Paul Brown – King MS; Duke Bradley –Wesley International Academy;
and Timmy Foster – Whitefoord ES.
This new leadership cohort in the cluster brought a more forward-thinking and collective
approach to student achievement – in particular a view that vertical alignment is critical in a
feeder system and a belief that relationships with charter schools should not be considered taboo.
In November 2012, this willingness to work together resulted in a historic meeting hosted by the
Zeist Foundation in which traditional school leaders from Jackson HS, Coan MS, and their
feeder elementary schools (Burgess Peterson Academy, Toomer, and Whitefoord) and charter
school leaders from Drew Charter met at East Lake Country Club for a discussion that was cofacilitated by NYU Metropolitan Center’s Executive Director, Pedro Noguera, and the
Westminster Schools Center for Teaching Director, Bob Ryshke. This initial meeting laid the
foundation for an opportunity to pilot a Principal Cohort and Instructional Coach Training that
involved traditional schools and charter schools during the second semester of the 2012–2013
school year. This pilot was the beginning of NYU Metropolitan Center’s Executive Director
Pedro Noguera’s ongoing relationship with the Jackson Cluster within the APS district.
This unprecedented collaboration among the school leaders inspired the place-based funders to
collaborate in support of the schools in the cluster. By exploring the concept of an “innovation
cluster,” the place-based funders aimed to create a process that allowed educators and their
supporters to think boldly and creatively about teaching and learning in the 21st century.
Jackson Cluster Student Data
This section contains data on the APS schools in the Jackson Cluster. In addition to performance
on state tests as an indicator of academic achievement and graduation rates, attendance and
suspension rates are salient predictors of achievement and graduation rates. The data provide a
snapshot of attendance, suspension, and high school graduation rates. The data include charter
schools that enroll students district-wide and beyond the geographical jurisdiction of the Jackson
Cluster.
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An Exploration into the Viability of an Educational Innovation Cluster
Purpose of Project
In addition to the changes within the Jackson Cluster, the summer of 2013 also found APS in a
transitional stage. Elections for a new Board of Education were scheduled for the Fall of 2013,
followed by the selection of a new Superintendent in early 2014.
The place-based funders in the Jackson Cluster recognized that the system-wide transition
presented a window of opportunity to explore opportunities for transformation within this cluster
with the new leaders at the school level and incoming leaders at the district level.
This motivation to explore opportunities for transformation was driven by the idea that
educational innovation could be a way to break down Atlanta’s walls between traditional and
charter schools and create an education ecosystem where students and staff at all schools in the
cluster could learn together.
As the scope of work was being negotiated between the Jackson Cluster Place-Based Funders
and NYU’s Metropolitan Center for Research on Equity and the Transformation of Schools, two
central questions guided the deliberations:

If the Jackson Cluster was designated as an “Innovation Cluster,” what would it look like?

If the Jackson Cluster was designated as an “Innovation Cluster,” how would the cluster stakeholders work together to support it?
All data-collection activities conducted by the NYU Metropolitan Center for Research on Equity
and the Transformation of Schools were designed with these two central questions in mind.
However, there was no assumption by the funders that the concept of an innovation cluster
would automatically be embraced by cluster stakeholders. More importantly, it was understood
that, whatever the findings, this research project was intended to lead to another phase of work in
2014 that would build a case for an APS innovation cluster model and could be approved by the
new superintendent and Board of Education.
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Appendix 1 – Maynard Jackson Cluster Map THIS ZONE MAP DOES NOT INCLUDE THE SCHOOLS
Taken from: http://www.atlanta.k12.ga.us/cms/lib/GA01000924/Centricity/Domain/108/Maynard%20Jackson.pdf
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The Metropolitan Center for Research on Equity and the Transformation of Schools
The Metropolitan Center for Research on Equity and the Transformation of Schools (Metro Center) is a
comprehensive, university-based center that focuses on educational research, policy, and practice. We
are a partner and resource at the local and national levels in strengthening and improving access,
opportunity, and the quality of education in our schools. Our mission is to target issues related to
educational equity by providing leadership and support to students, parents, teachers, administrators,
and policy makers.
For 35 years, the Metro Center has been a transformational force inspiring positive change in schools,
districts, and regions across the country.
The Metro Center is powerfully focused on driving equity and access in urban, suburban, and rural
school settings – especially when confronting issues of race, gender, and national origin. Under the
visionary leadership of Dr. Pedro Noguera, Executive Director, Peter L. Agnew Professor of Education,
and Professor of Teaching and Learning, the Metro Center is continually expanding and evolving its
services. Persistence of vision has forged the Metro Center into a nationally recognized leader in
educational equity. Our comprehensive programs serve a wide range of constituencies – more than
5,000 classroom staff impacting 125,000 students, as well as 2,800 parents and 61 agencies, schools,
and school districts.
Contact information:
Dr. Pedro A. Noguera, Ph.D
Executive Director
Peter L. Agnew Professor of Education
E-mail: [email protected]
Tel: 212-998-5100
Dr. Patrick Jean-Pierre, Psy.D
Site Director/Senior Project Associate,
E-mail: [email protected]
Tel: 212.992.7408
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