Insights

Co-Implementation Builds Capacity and Sustains Growth

From Approach to Impact: How Partnership Is the Key to Driving Educational Change

This is the second in a four-part blog series exploring the Northwest Comprehensive Center’s approach to helping state education partners meet their goals.

Technical assistance is more effective and responsive to partner priorities when the work is implemented collaboratively by the provider and the recipient. Through joint implementation, partners not only achieve their goals but also build capacity that extends beyond the challenge at hand, leading to more sustainable progress.

Collaborative implementation and capacity building is the second phase in the Northwest Comprehensive Center (NWCC) approach to technical assistance. Below, we share two examples of how we leverage collaboration to build capacity for long-term impact in Washington and Oregon.

Working Together to Support Washington Families and Caregivers

The Washington State Office of Superintendent of Public instruction (OSPI) is releasing new K–12 standards for math and English language arts. To make sure the rollout is successful, OSPI is taking steps to help families and caregivers understand the standards for their student’s grade level. When families are engaged and understand the expectations, they can help their students meet key milestones.

To this end, OSPI and NWCC partnered to create a suite of resources that teachers can use to communicate with families and caregivers about the new standards. Materials are available for each grade level in each content area. Using plain accessible language, the materials outline grade-specific standards and ways to support learning at home.

OSPI provided the strategic vision and foundational content, drawing from a national scan of comparable materials. NWCC incorporated input from Washington families and community partners to ensure the resources are relevant and useful. We also worked closely with OSPI to ensure that the resources are rooted in the Washington context.

Together OSPI and NWCC refined the content, strengthened the design, and planned for dissemination. The result is a set of accessible, engaging, and informative materials designed to help families across Washington’s diverse communities understand and support student learning under the new standards.

Building a Foundation for Change in Oregon

Oregon Senate Bill 141 required the Oregon Department of Education (ODE) to engage a third party to review two sets of state administrative rules that outline standards for school districts and education service districts. To comply with the legislation, ODE asked NWCC to assess the standards and find ways to improve clarity, increase accountability, and better support student outcomes. NWCC drew from legislative intent, educator and family perspectives, evidence from other states, and Oregon’s existing accountability system to identify recommendations for improvement.

ODE and NWCC have started to respond to the report’s highest priority recommendations. Together we are developing a plan to operationalize what ODE can implement on its own and to collaborate with external partners, like the Oregon Legislature and State Board of Education, to address other findings. NWCC and ODE are also mapping key actors who can act on the recommendations, building strategic communications and coordination capabilities, and planning for change management.

By building ODE’s capacity to implement the recommendations, NWCC and ODE are laying the groundwork for lasting improvements in accountability and student outcomes.

Co-Implementation Leads to Lasting Results

Through co-implementation, state education agencies can take on critical projects with support from an external partner, all while building the insights and skills to sustain the work in the future. This capacity-centered approach equips state leaders to navigate complexity, respond to evolving needs, and ultimately deliver better outcomes for students, families, and communities.

Our next blog in this series will explore the third phase of NWCC’s approach: engage in reflective practice and continuous improvement cycles.