School District Innovation Zones - A New Wave of District-led Efforts to Improve Economic Mobility

Oct 15, 2026

Uploaded by Margaret

School District Innovation Zones explores how district-led “innovation zones” aim to improve economic mobility for low-income students. It contrasts the limited impact of past school turnaround efforts and large federal grant programs with a newer model that grants participating district schools control over staffing, curriculum, and budgeting. Drawing on five district experiences in Chicago, Denver, Indianapolis, Memphis, and Springfield, the report highlights design features focused on sustained improvements in teaching and learning over multiple years.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages46

Reading Time1 h 56 min

AccessFree to download

A New Wave of District Innovation Zones

A Growing and Varied Landscape of Innovation Zones Across the Country

Promising Outcomes to Date for This New Wave of Innovation Zones

Design Features That Create a Framework for Success

A Promising Turnaround Strategy Worth Watching

Appendix: Profiles of School District Innovation Zones

Profiles

The AUSL Way: Moving from “Good” to “Truly Excellent”(Chicago)

From Innovation Schools to an Innovation Zone in Denver, Colorado

Innovation Network Schools in Indianapolis: Phalen Leadership Academies Takes the Lead

Built to Last: The Springfield Empowerment Zone Partnership, Springfield, Massachusetts

Proving What’s Possible: Shelby County (Memphis) Public Schools, Tennessee

School District Innovation Zones A New Wave of District-led Efforts to Improve Economic Mobility By Nithin Iyengar, Kate Lewis-LaMonica, and Mike Perigo Collaborating to accelerate social impact October 2017 Table of Contents A New Wave of District Innovation Zones ............................................ 3 A Growing and Varied Landscape of Innovation Zones Across the Country ........... 4 Promising Outcomes to Date for This New Wave of Innovation Zones ............... 7 Design Features That Create a Framework for Success ............................. 7 A Promising Turnaround Strategy Worth Watching ............................... 12 Appendix: Profiles of School District Innovation Zones ............................... 13 Profiles ......................................................................... 14 The AUSL Way: Moving from “Good” to “Truly Excellent”(Chicago) ................ 14 From Innovation Schools to an Innovation Zone in Denver, Colorado ............... 21 Innovation Network Schools in Indianapolis: Phalen Leadership Academies Takes the Lead ..................................................................... 27 Built to Last: The Springfield Empowerment Zone Partnership, Springfield, Massachusetts ................................................................ 34 Proving What’s Possible: Shelby County (Memphis) Public Schools, Tennessee ......40 Cover photo: Phalen Leadership Academies Educators, policy makers, and philanthropists have worked for years to improve the substandard quality of education provided many low-income students, one of the most effective ways to put disadvantaged kids on a pathway of upward economic mobility . But well-meaning reform efforts aimed at turning around failing schools largely disappoint . More than $3 .5 billion in federal School Improvement Grants awarded in 2010 “had no impact on math or reading test scores, high school graduation, or college enrollment,”concluded an independent 2017 research report .1 Similarly, the vast majority of districtled efforts to improve low-performing schools have been equally unsuccessful .2 None of this comes as a surprise . It’s widely understood that school districts face significant barriers to designing and implementing sustained improvements in chronically underperforming schools . In particular, the size and complexity of urban districts pose daunting challenges to advance significant reform efforts, despite glaring need . Many students—especially low-income students and students of color—fall years behind in reading and math . Principals and teachers grow fatigued by repeated—mostly unsuccessful—improvement efforts . Money also is a problem . Cash-strapped districts in recent years have relied heavily on federal grants to fund turnaround strategies, but that source has diminished over time . As a result, many district leaders feel stymied when it comes to delivering meaningful improvement . Instead, district improvement efforts often focus on modest goals, well below the standard required for social mobility and rarely include strategies to meaningfully improve student outcomes . A new wave of district-led “innovation zones” holds promise to overcome these challengesand deliver significant improvements in student outcomes . These zones provide a subset of district schools with control over staffing, curriculum, and budgeting . State laws and contractual agreements often guarantee the autonomy that can sustain the zone despite potential changes in district leadership . Nonprofits typically operate the schools and are held accountable to the school district for significant improvement in student outcomes . The experiences of five school districts that are vanguards of this new wave of innovation zones—Chicago; Denver; Indianapolis; Memphis, TN; and Springfield, MA—are the subject of this report .3 These innovation zones reveal certain design features that place a

FAQs

Why do district-led turnaround efforts often underperform for low-performing schools?

The report attributes limited results to barriers such as district size and complexity, persistent student gaps in reading and math, teacher and principal fatigue from repeated improvement attempts, and reduced funding as federal grant support diminishes over time.

What makes an innovation zone different from typical district interventions?

Innovation zones provide a subset of district schools with autonomy over staffing, curriculum, and budgeting. State laws and contractual agreements often sustain that autonomy, while nonprofits generally operate the schools and are held accountable for improved student outcomes.

Which districts' experiences are used to illustrate the innovation zone approach?

The report focuses on five districts: Chicago, Denver, Indianapolis, Memphis (TN), and Springfield (MA). These experiences are used to identify design features that emphasize improving teaching and learning across multiple years.

Oct 15, 2026

Uploaded by Margaret