Creative Leadership Solutions

PLCs do not fail because the research is flawed — they fail when implementation lacks trust, clarity, and adaptive leadership.

Read the Research - https://www.creativeleadership.net/plcs-that-work-implementation-is-the-variable/

In June, we will take a “summer break” and shift to twice-monthly updates.

Devices became symbols of equity. But access was never the same as impact.

The real question isn’t how much tech students use—it’s how much thinking they do.

This research challenges what schools have assumed for years.

Read the Research - https://www.creativeleadership.net/flatpack-learning-why-access-was-never-the-same-as-impact/

Collective Efficacy isn’t built though motivation.

It’s built when Collaborative Learning Teams:

-Look at the same student work
-Calibrate expectations
-Adjust instruction together
-See growth as a team

When we experience the impact collectively, belief follows.

Ann McCarty Dave Burgess Lisa Almeida Allyson Apsey

What happens when AI meets high-impact teaching practices?

Real-time feedback, sharper decisions, and stronger collaboration.

This is how schools turn insight into action.

Read the latest Research Wednesday and see what works - https://www.creativeleadership.net/putting-ai-to-work-in-collaborative-teams-enhancing-formative-assessment-for-student-learning/

The CLS May Newsletter features Family & Community Engagement experts Dr. Alex Marrero, Superintendent of Denver Public Schools, and Dr. Washington B. Collado, who reveal how to move families from simple involvement to true empowerment — the real key to student success.

Inside you’ll discover:
・Strategies for district leaders
・Strategies for school leaders
・The clear progression: Involvement → Engagement → Empowerment

https://www.creativeleadership.net/newsletter/

Students are often asked to write about texts they have not yet fully processed.

Without structured interaction with the text, writing remains shallow and inconsistent.

Text annotation provides a practical bridge between reading and meaningful writing.

https://www.creativeleadership.net/using-text-annotation-to-support-the-writing-process/

If assessment results don’t change instruction, it’s not formative.

And if teams aren’t using that evidence together, it’s not collective efficacy.

(Reeves, Creative Leadership Solutions)

Dave Burgess Allyson Apsey Ann McCarty

An average tells you where a student started.

Not always where they finished.

If a student demonstrates mastery in the end, what should the grade reflect?

What if the biggest barrier to women in leadership… is the belief there’s only room for a few?

It’s time to replace competition with intentional support and sponsorship.

Here’s how women in education can rise—together.

Read this week's Research Wednesday - https://www.creativeleadership.net/research-wednesday-april-22-2026/

The problem with PLCs and MTSS isn’t effort, belief, or expertise. It is design.

When the operating model is unclear, collaboration does not consistently lead to better Tier 1 instruction or results.

There is a more reliable way to design systems, so improvement actually follows from the work teams do.

Read this week's Research Wednesday to learn how - https://www.creativeleadership.net/research-wednesday-april-15-2026/