The Virginia Department of Education has established thirty Virginia Honor Schools that receive grants from the state to help with targeting assistance on increasing graduation rates and college readiness. Virginia is using three main strategies to reach those goals: 1) establishing an aligned governance structure for elementary, secondary, and postsecondary education; 2) building high school leadership by providing specialized training and mentoring to each of the thirty honor schools’ principals; and 3) developing and implementing various college access, readiness and transition strategies. The website includes Virginia' proposal to the National Governors Association and a wide variety of information related to how the state has used its grant in the thirty schools across the state. It might be helpful for states that are helping to implement coordinated high school redesign efforts in a number of schools.
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Background and Context
Providing leadership across a state's vast education system is a daunting challenge. In an era of increased accountability, the state's role is even more central to the teaching that takes place in each classroom throughout the state. Whether through the establishment and improvement of state data systems, or shifting the internal organization of the agency, states are undertaking a variety of efforts to provide stronger leadership.
