More than 100 Chamber members, educators and advocates packed the Hilton Suites Downtown yesterday to learn more about ASSET, Nashville’s plan to attract, retain and reward outstanding teachers in Metro Schools. As part of the Chamber’s Education 2020 Speaker Series, Mayor Karl Dean and Director of Schools Dr. Jesse Register announced that the first phase of ASSET will be implemented this school year in three ways:
- Identify the 20-30 MNPS schools that are excelling at providing job-embedded professional development for their teachers and replicate the practice across the district;
- Create a Career Development Institute for the very best MNPS teachers so they are prepared to serve in a leadership capacity at their school, with additional compensation; and
- Expand principal leadership training and the use of instructional rounds (modeling of teaching best practices) to all schools.
Mayor Karl Dean announces the launch of the ASSET initiative.
Discussion and planning for the second phase of ASSET will now begin. This will include how the district will tie compensation to teacher and principal evaluations, as well as how to improve the recruitment, induction and training of new teachers.
The event concluded with a dynamic panel discussion among policy experts and Nashville educators who were instrumental in developing the ASSET recommendations. Brad Jupp, assistant to U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan, talked about the remarkable level of civic engagement present in Nashville and endorsed ASSET’s focus on building a comprehensive human capital system, instead of isolated teacher initiatives. Jupp, an architect of Denver’s trailblazing teacher compensation system, is serving as an adviser in creating the Career Development Institute. Angela Chapman, principal of Ross Elementary, talked about the need for principal leadership training, so that school leaders know how to recognize and nurture outstanding teaching at their schools. Thurgood Marshall Middle School teacher Pamela Sexton praised the potential of the Career Development Institute as an opportunity for exemplary teachers to ultimately play a leadership role at their schools without having to leave teaching to become an administrator.
Will ASSET succeed in improving student achievement in Nashville? Matt Springer, director of the National Center on Performance Incentives, told the audience that Tennessee and Nashville have the best data in the country to chart progress.
A panel of national experts and local educators discuss the ASSET recommendations (L-R: Matthew Springer, Angela Chapman, moderator Susan Bodary with Education First Consulting, Pamela Sexton and Brad Jupp).
To download the full ASSET report, visit the MNPS website at http://mnps.org/Page68384.aspx..