WILLIAM T. GRANT FOUNDATION

Research Practice Partnerships Learning Community

May 14-15, 2012 at the Hotel Palomar in Washington, DC

Agenda

May 13, 2012

7:00Optional dinner at Urbana at Hotel Palomar

May 14, 2012

8:30Breakfast

9:00 – 9:15Welcome overview

9:15 – 10:00Getting to know people and partnerships – Round 1

Facilitated table discussions

10:00 – 10:15Break

10:15 – 11:00Getting to know people and projects – Round 2

Facilitated table discussions

11:00 – 12:30Understanding district needs and building strong relationships

Panelists:

  • David Lussier, Austin Independent School District
  • Jonathan Brice, Baltimore City Schools
  • Martin Kurzweil, New York City Public Schools

Respondent: Suzanne Donovan, SERP

Moderator: Vivian Tseng, William T. Grant Foundation

12:30 – 1:30 Lunch

1:30 – 2:45Identifying similarities, differences and common challenges across partnerships

Presenter/Facilitator: Cynthia Coburn, University of California – Berkeley

2:45 – 3:15Break

3:15 – 4:15Small group discussions (Select One)

  • Putting Research to Use. This discussion will focus how partnerships are using findings from research to make improvements at the school and classroom level. Paul LeMahieu, Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching and David Lussier, AustinIndependent School Distirct will help kick off the discussion by sharing strategies from their work.

(over)

  • Strategies and Structures that Support Collaboration. This discussion will focus on the nuts and bolts of forming and maintaining partnerships, including organizational structures, staffing, and communication strategies between districts and research teams. Nancy Vye, University of Washington and Angie DeLoreto, Bellevue School District will help kick off the discussion by sharing strategies from their work.
  • Developing Joint Research Agendas. This discussion session will focus on strategies for developing joint research agendas, given the importance of balancing the practical and sometimes shorter-term needs of districts with longer-term and bigger picture research questions.Suzanne Donovan and colleagues from SERP will help kick off the discussion by sharing strategies from their work.

4:30 – 5:30Individual consultations

7:00Cocktails and Dinner – D’Arlington House, 1610 20th Street NW

May 15, 2012

8:00 – 8:30Breakfast and additional consultations

8:30 – 9:30Understanding whether and how research-practice partnerships add value

Presenters:

  • Elaine Allensworth and Melissa Roderick,Consortium for Chicago School Research; Jen Cheatham, Chicago Public Schools
  • Paul Cobb, Vanderbilt University; Michael Sorum, Fort Worth Schools; Sandy Ledford, Jefferson County Public Schools; Thomas Smith, Vanderbilt University

Respondent: Steve Fleischman, REL Northwest

Moderator: Nicole Yohalem, Forum for Youth Investment

9:30 – 10:30Understanding whether and how partnerships add value– discussions

Discussions in role alike small groups with guiding questions

10:30 – 11:00 Break

11:00 – 12:00Team time

Debriefing/planning time with colleagues

12:00 – 1:00Lunch

1:00 – 2:15Exploring common problems of practice

Small group conversations aboutspecific content areas, including potential cross-partnership work (e.g. literacy, math, teacher effectiveness, career/college readiness, middle grades).

2:15 – 2:45Reflections and closing