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Stephanie Hirsh

Stephanie Hirsh retired in June 2019 after 31 years with Learning Forward, an international association of more than 13,000 educators committed to increasing student achievement through effective professional learning. Hirsh led the organization as its executive director for the last 13 years where she presented, published, and consulted on Learning Forward’s behalf across North America. Her books include Becoming a Learning Team, co-authored with Tracy Crow (Learning Forward, 2018), Becoming a Learning System, co-authored with Kay Psencik and Frederick Brown (Learning Forward, 2018); A Playbook for Professional Learning: Putting the Standards Into Action, co-authored with Shirley Hord (Learning Forward, 2012); and The Learning Educator: A New Era for Professional Learning, co-authored with Joellen Killion (NSDC, 2007). Hirsh wrote a column for The Learning Professional, Learning Forward’s bimonthly magazine, Educational Leadership, Phi Delta Kappan, The Record, The School Administrator, American School Board Journal, The High School Magazine, and Education Week. Hirsh has served on a number of advisory boards including Learning First Alliance, 2-Rev, Digital Promise, the University of Texas College of Education, and The Teaching Channel. She served three terms as a school board trustee in the Richardson (TX) Independent School District. She received a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Texas Staff Development Council, Master Trustee from the Texas School Board Association, and was named a Distinguished Alumna by the University of North Texas.

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    A 2015 study by Schmidt and Burroughs found that low-income students are less likely than high-income students to have high-quality content and materials in the classroom. The authors said, “As it stands now, students’ chances to learn challenging content depend on whether they are lucky enough to attend a school […]
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    Knowing this will be my last opportunity to write this column as Learning Forward’s executive director, I want to share a few insights on habits I’ve found valuable as a leader. Not surprisingly, they are built on a foundation of continuous learning. ESTABLISH YOUR EXPERTISE As educators, we are often […]
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    This is not the first time that President Trump has completely eliminated Title IIA funds in his budget proposal. Yet I’m more upset this time and here’s why. Not only did he reduce to nothing the number of dollars dedicated to substantive professional learning and leadership support, he created a […]
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    Remember the importance of maintaining a network of colleagues with connections. Ask five people how they got their current job, and I suspect networking played a key role in a majority of them. One of the privileges of serving as executive director is the opportunity to hear other professionals’ stories […]
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    At Learning Forward, we are embracing an emphasis on the implementation of high-quality instructional materials. As always, our work centers on building the capacity of all educators to ensure all students experience excellent teaching and learning. Because research has helped to clarify precisely where teachers need to increase their capacity […]
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    At Learning Forward, we fundamentally believe every child deserves access to excellent teaching and learning every day, regardless of his or her ZIP code or family income. Socioeconomic conditions, race, gender, ethnic background, and other factors should not be predictors for educational attainment. We believe school systems and other learning […]
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    Learning Forward Executive Director Stephanie Hirsh issued a statement about the bipartisan conference bill that funds defense, labor, health, human services, and education. “I applaud the bipartisan and bicameral agreement on the FY19 spending bill that provides level funding for Title IIA of ESSA, which funds critical support so educators […]
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    I have worked for 30 years at Learning Forward and that has required a tremendous amount of travel. On every trip, I ask the people I meet to tell me about their schools. While my data collection methods are quite unscientific, my findings are very similar to those highlighted in […]
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    As more practitioners and researchers recognize the importance of addressing students’ social and emotional learning (SEL) in schools, we can’t leave to chance the professional learning needed to make these efforts effective. Far too often, the professional learning linked to essential emerging topics is a distant afterthought in many educators’ […]
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