Transformation

Rethink systems to achieve big impact for students

Our Perspective

A unique approach for making lasting change

Now more than ever, schools are facing big, urgent challenges: chronic absenteeism, missed learning, skyrocketing social and emotional needs, public health, to name a few.

Insightful, innovative, and skillful leadership are required to lead the transformation required to address the enormous challenges confronting the sector. The future of our students and the very future of our nation are at stake. Successfully moving forward requires not only identifying innovative initiatives and processes, but executing skillful change management that is all about the people and culture of an organization.

Through DMGroup’s approach to school and district transformation, we translate big, urgent challenges into deliberate, specific goals that can be achieved through continuous learning and improvement cycles and shifts in organizational culture. Our framework can help school and district leaders drive change that lasts.

Our Approach

DMGroup’s transformation services and implementation support combine insight and strategic vision to help district leaders reach aspirational goals. We focus on effective, iterative tools and techniques rooted in proven leadership development methodologies used by successful organizations across industries and sectors.

We help schools and districts learn quickly from successes and failures to meet immediate, measurable performance goals. But perhaps more importantly, we take an approach that addresses root causes and behavior change within your organization by fostering more solution-oriented and outcome-focused mindsets.

  • Tailored consulting services to meet your district’s unique needs
  • Support aligned with district priorities to help you achieve sustainable improvement
  • Proven approaches backed by best-practices research
  • Deep analysis of current state to support decision making
  • Just-in-time performance coaching and targeted professional development help team members develop the skills needed to address challenges and overcome obstacles
  • Recommendations based on a multi-faceted understanding of challenges, needs and objectives
  • Change management support that builds leadership capacity, staff development and community support

Key Benefits

Achieve scalable, sustainable, lasting change

  • Align initiatives with district priorities to help achieve sustainable improvement
  • Identify approaches backed by best-practices research and based on a multi-faceted understanding of your district’s strengths and challenges
  • Engage key decision-makers and empower on-the-ground teams implementing services
  • Promote confidence, creativity, and collaborative problem-solving among staff
  • Identify the factors that lead to peak performance and create the conditions to sustain that level of performance over time
  • Create focus and urgency, and unlock potential for future, replicable successes

STRATEGIC PLANNING

Instead of creating a long list of initiatives, the DMGroup's strategic planning methodology focuses on a concise plan based on a theory of action and a small set of priorities. Using a well-defined plan, we articulate priorities, initiatives, and measurable goals that guide the daily work of district's daily operations. Our approach also incorporates strategies to engage stakeholders and build buy-in for the plan.

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Consulting Services

Expertise and support to help you achieve your biggest goals

Consulting Service

Breakthrough Results Program

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Build enduring skills while achieving measurable results. Supported by a dedicated Breakthrough Results Program performance coach, district teams will work in rapid cycles over a period of 8-10 weeks to achieve a significant, measurable performance goal for the district. Just-in-time targeted professional development and coaching provided by the performance coach will help the team track data, innovate, overcome obstacles, and build the skills to get results and effect meaningful change. The Breakthrough Results Program can be applied to a broad range of challenges ranging from increasing attendance to raising math and ELA achievement to improving operations.

Consulting Service

Central Office Redesign

Conduct a review of central office roles and responsibilities, compare current practices to best practices and align organizational structures and administrative resources to best support district objectives.

Consulting Service

High School Redesign

Through a visioning and strategic planning process, develop and implement a high school redesign that meets your district’s objectives for student learning at the high school level and ensures that students graduate ready to meet their next challenges.

Consulting Service

Secondary Course Offerings Review

Conduct a comprehensive review of course offerings to ensure that the courses you offer are meeting student’s needs as well as the objectives for the district. We’ll work with you to define the scope and objectives of the review, which could include evaluating the rigor of course offerings, identifying gaps, optimizing course offerings to address enrollment challenges or planning for expected increases or decreases in overall school enrollment.

Consulting Service

School Turnaround Support

Develop and implement a comprehensive plan for school turnaround with a team working side-by-side with you throughout. We’ll supplement your team’s leadership capacity, analyze current practices and compare them to best practices, help you develop and embed new systems to support improvement, manage change to meet school and district priorities, and work with you to build community support and leadership capacity. Our school turnaround expertise is extensive and always tailored to your unique needs.

Client Result

New Bedford Public Schools' (MA) turnaround efforts led to a major milestone: the district being released from state monitoring.

Read the Success Story

Interested in something more specifically tailored to meet your needs?

DMGroup can provide custom-tailored support in the areas of school and district transformation. If you have a unique need, reach out to let us know how we can help you.