Partner Voices: Puget Sound Educational Service District

Instruction Partners provides end-to-end, shoulder-to-shoulder support to regional education agencies, from strategy and planning through implementation and continuous improvement. 

Puget Sound Educational Service District (PSESD) is one of nine regional educational agencies serving schools in Washington state. Amber McCulloch, Executive Director of K–Post-secondary at Puget Sound Educational Service District, shared what it’s been like to engage Instruction Partners to create a support plan for schools navigating the challenges presented by COVID-19.

Watch and read their story below.

PSESD leaders and the Instruction Partners team created a Hybrid Model Working Group for Washington district leaders to share learning and best practices. “Something the partnership afforded was having set aside time to really think about the arc of learning,” says Amber McCulloch, Executive Director of K–post-secondary at Puget Sound Educational Service District. “How do we create space to be responsive, and learn from what we’ve already done thus far?” McCulloch reflects, “I think the greatest impact I’ve seen was certainly the Hybrid Model Planning Workgroup because it met such a need that districts were having. . . . The group met a lot more frequently [than other groups], so there were quick turnaround planning meetings getting together every week to really think about what’s happening next week, and how do we get ahead of that?”

FEATURED TOOL: DEVELOPING A TIME-SENSITIVE WORKING GROUP

Instruction Partners is helping PSESD leaders create space to reflect on what they have learned from the work this year and consider possible pathways for the work ahead. McCulloch reflected, “I think one of the things that came out of this partnership is really thinking about: Here’s the work, we’re doing that work, but how do we also have this balcony view of looking at that work? And, how does that inform how we approach change, generally?” She adds, “Change will happen. And after this pandemic, there will still be things changing. What can we learn in this time about how we respond to change so that it helps us be better prepared to respond to change in the future? That’s something to take forward.”