The School District of Lee County is pleased to announce 11 schools have achieved Level 1 Certification in Marzano High Reliability Schools™. Level 1 certification means these schools have created a “Safe, Supportive, and Collaborative Culture,” which is the foundation for every level that follows. Without such a culture, student achievement will be compromised. Day-to-day school operations are addressed and evaluated in Level 1.
“We are incredibly proud of our Level 1 certified schools and their commitment to ensuring effective systems are in place to support educators, engage families and community members, and address issues of curriculum, instruction, assessment, and student achievement.” Said Dr. Jeff Spiro, Chief Academic Officer.
To be considered for certification, teacher leaders and school leaders opted into a six-day High Reliability Schools Academy over the 2021/2022 and 2022/2323 school year to collect and analyze data, then develop an action plan to fulfill each indicator for Level 1. The Level 1 Certified Schools join a cohort of 457 Level 1 Certified schools across the United States.
Representatives from the District and the 11 schools were recently honored by Marzano Resources at the High Reliability Schools Summit in San Antonio, Texas. The schools achieving Level 1 Certification are:
- Bayshore Elementary
- Cape Coral Elementary
- Principal Nicole Osterholm
- Challenger Middle
- Cypress Lake Middle
- Diplomat Middle
- Principal Maura Bennington
- Edgewood Academy
- Hancock Creek Elementary
- Principal Dr. Denise Phillips-Luster
- Lexington Middle
- Orangewood Elementary
- San Carlos Park Elementary
- Trafalgar Elementary
The high reliability school (HRS) program was created by Marzano Resources to help transform schools into organizations that take proactive steps to ensure student success. Using a research-based five-level hierarchy, along with leading and lagging indicators, educators learn to assess, monitor, and confirm the effectiveness of their schools.
This framework, based on 50 years of educational research, defines five progressive levels of performance that a school must master to become an HRS—where all students learn the content and skills they need for success in college, careers, and beyond.
“As you move through the levels, it represents a complete transformation in how schools are run,” says CEO Robert J. Marzano. Schools must collect data and validate their performance to climb each level of the hierarchy.
Certification is determined by Marzano Resources analysts in cooperation with school data teams. Using the HRS framework and indicators, schools can drive sustained, positive, and significant impacts on student achievement by synthesizing multiple complex initiatives into one harmonious system.