A practical guide to the ins and outs of building, maintaining, and restoring positive and productive relationships in schools. Relationships are at the core of education. When teachers are intentional about all of their relationships, they can address burnout, increase their own effectiveness, and improve the learning environment for their…

The EQ Way is a reflection tool for leaders navigating difficult times--and difficult emotions--in their schools. In education, challenges surround you every day, but they don't have to define you. When the negative, frightful, or unknown happens--when you're confused because you aren't sure where things are headed--that's when you want to focus…

In the United States, the umbrella term "rural education" applies to diverse place-based contexts ranging from remote mountain communities to midwestern agricultural areas to southwestern mesas and beyond. One thing these varied environments have in common is the need for creative, solutions-oriented leadership. In "The Resilient…

Conflict is certain to show up in any school, so how do you as the leader know how to respond or when to intervene? Disagreements, friction, and even outright hostility are a common and unavoidable result of people working together, and not all conflict is necessarily bad; it can also provide an opportunity to learn and grow. Whether the situation…

Meaningful improvement in schools and districts is just small shifts away. How can administrators and teachers work together in ways that lead to significant--and sustained--improvement over time? How can schools accomplish this goal without adding to the work of overstretched educators? This practical guide answers these questions with…

In "School Culture Rewired," education experts Steve Gruenert and Todd Whitaker offer strategies and advice for defining, assessing, and transforming your school's culture into one that is positive, productive, and actively working to enrich students' lives. Drawing from decades of research on organizational cultures and school…

In "Illuminate the Way: The School Leader's Guide to Addressing and Preventing Teacher Burnout," veteran teacher and instructional coach Chase Mielke outlines the three dimensions of burnout--exhaustion, cynicism, and inefficacy--and provides the methods to help foster agency, relatedness, and competence in your staff. School leaders…

In 1966, the Coleman report assessed conditions in U.S. schools and identified barriers that prevented Black students from accessing high-quality education. Since that time--and despite federal efforts to close gaps in achievement between students who are Black, Indigenous, or people of color (BIPOC) and their White peers--not much has changed.…

For years, schools have worked to ensure that students develop their social-emotional learning skills, which research shows can benefit not only students' well-being, but also their academic achievement. Until now, however, developing these skills in adults has not received the same emphasis in schools, despite evidence that they are just as…

In "Uprooting Instructional Inequity," noted leadership coach Jill Harrison Berg offers a comprehensive guide to help school and teacher leaders amplify the power of collaborative inquiry as a means for identifying, interrogating, and addressing instructional inequity. At the center of the book is Berg's i3PD Planning Map, an invaluable…

This practical guide shows leaders how to implement and sustain a robust microcredentialing program in their school or district. Teachers require rigorous professional learning that ensures mastery rather than simply marking time served. Microcredentials offer a competency-based approach to professional learning that can be tailored to…

A four-step process for effective equity practices in schools, with an array of professional development activities, leadership tips, and downloadable tools. Recent years have brought new calls to dismantle discriminatory policies and practices in U.S. schools. But adopting an equity focus doesn't guarantee the desired results. There's a risk that…

Megan Kortlandt, Carly Stone, and Samantha Keesling have developed a flexible structure for collaborative professional learning that they call the "principal lab," in which K-12 principals learn with and from each other to become better instructional leaders. Each chapter walks through the foundational components of a successful…

The secret to every positive learning environment? Belonging. When students feel that they belong in their school and classroom, commitment to learning goes up and behavioral disruptions subside. And when teachers embrace an SEL-infused approach to classroom management that helps every student feel valued, safe, and competent, belonging soars.…

Feeling overwhelmed--constantly, on a daily basis--has unfortunately become the status quo among educators. But it does not have to be. Schools need to stop adding more programs, strategies, activities, resources, projects, assessments, and meetings. Though they are often implemented with the best intentions, these things ultimately end up as…