Harrington Park School District

Building flexible, learning-focused teacher evaluations: The district’s professional development centers around flexible Self-Directed Growth Plans, favoring educator-led learning clusters that develop fearless teachers. Educators are encouraged to take risks and participate in action research that drives positive change in the classroom.

Empowering students to lead and thrive in the community: The district focuses on developing the whole student by celebrating individual achievements, encouraging connections with the community, and promoting health and wellness. Project Pride, a student-driven leadership development program, advances global empathy, equity, and understanding through real-life experiences and service learning, such as serving meals to the homeless, practicing socialization skills with younger students with autism, and cleaning the local watershed.

Leveraging design thinking for positive, personalized learning changes: The district uses design thinking methodology to change teachers’ instructional practices and the district’s learning environment. The district’s efforts around building classroom redesign challenges and prioritizing access to technology help personalize the learning experience so students can experiment, take creative risks, and learn through both failures and successes.

Supporting social-emotional learning groups support the most vulnerable students: Numerous teacher-led student groups target various needs, such as socialization, divorce, loss, stereotyping, aggression, and equity access, that students face within the district.