WHO ARE WE?
We are a corporate foundation established in 1984 by an
endowment from the Matsushita Electric Corporation of
America, which is the parent company of Panasonic,
Technics, and Quasar.
WHAT IS OUR MISSION?
Our mission is to help public schools and school districts
improve learning for all students so that they may use
their minds well and become productive, responsible citizens.
Why is the
Panasonic Foundation Unique?
• It is aimed at systemic, systemlevel restructuring
• It is long term (5-10 years) vs
short term (1-3 years)
• It provides direct technical
assistance vs grants
• Each partnership is built on
collaborative structures involving
multiple stakeholder groups
Growing the Partnership:
The Consultant’s Role
Facilitating
Teaching
Scanning and analyzing
Focus on
best practice
Coaching
and
critical
friending
Brokering and Linking
Flint Public
Schools
Seattle
Minneapolis
& MN Dept of Ed
Norristown
Columbus Public
Schools
Racine
Boston
Highline
Englewood
& NJ Dept of Ed
Hayward Unified
School District
Allentown
Norwalk-LaMirada Unified
School District
San Diego Public Schools
Norfolk
Lancaster
Cincinnati Public
Schools
Santa Fe
Atlanta
Northern New Mexico Network or Rural
Education
& NM Dept of Ed
Broward County
Corpus Christi
Current
Baton Rouge
Pasco County
Miami-Dade
Graduates
Learning by Doing: Panasonic Partnerships and Systemic School Reform
by Terry Clark and Richard Lacey (St. Lucie Press, 1997)
Strategies looks at district-level reform issues and is published in collaboration with the American
Association of School Administrators.
Learning From Each Other: Questions & Answers About the Clark, Panasonic, and
Rockefeller Foundations’ Long-Term Investment in Systemic School Reform
By Robert A. Kronley (Grantmakers for Education, 2000).
Essential School System Purpose and Responsibilities
The essential purpose of school systems is to educate all students to high levels through high quality instruction: All
Means All.
Based on this purpose, school systems must fulfill eight responsibilities:
1. Clarify and promote the core value that all students can and will learn at high levels;
2. Ensure a culture and climate of care, commitment, and continuous improvement;
3. Establish high learning standards and promote standards-based teaching and learning so that all students learn at high levels;
4. Establish clear and explicit performance expectations for all system personnel to support all students meeting the standards;
5. Ensure that all system personnel have the capacity to meet the performance expectations;
6. Allocate fiscal and material resources to support the system’s essential purpose and core value;
7. Implement a shared-accountability system that holds students, staff, and the system itself accountable for all students meeting high
standards;
8. Engage in advocacy, coalitions and other significant relationships at the local, state and national levels so that the system can achieve its
essential purpose and core value.
Responsibility #5: Professional Learning and Human Resources
To ensure that all system personnel have the capacity to meet the performance
expectations
5.a
Are principals, teachers, instructional coaches and non-instructional staff recruited,
inducted, and assigned to meet each school’s unique instructional needs? How? How
well?
5.b
Does the system recruit, induct, and assign all other personnel so that the “right” people
are in the right position? How? How well?
5.c
Does the system provide high quality instructional leaders for all classrooms in all
schools? How? How well?
5.d
Does the system provide effective leadership at all levels in support of high quality
instruction? How? How well?
5.e
Does the system’s professional development plan build the capacity of all personnel to
meet their performance expectations? How? How well?
5.f
Is professional development based on analyses of data revealing unique student needs in
particular settings and at particular levels? How? How well?
5.g
Does the system provide professional development for its personnel at all levels to use
data appropriately? How? How well?
5.h
Are professional development activities evaluated in terms of their impact on teaching and
learning outcomes? How? How well?
Instructional leadership is the
demonstrated ability to powerfully and
positively influence the quality of
instructional practice in classrooms
throughout a school.
5.c. Does the system provide high-quality instructional leaders for all
classrooms in all schools? How? How well?
1. District and school staff describe instructional leadership not only in terms of
an individual or individuals, but as a set of behaviors that include deep content
knowledge, a shared picture of effective teaching and learning, and modeling
and inspiring improved instruction among colleagues.
5.c. Does the system provide high-quality instructional leaders for all classrooms
in all schools? How? How well?
2. The district and individual schools are continually seeking to identify, develop,
and nurture instructional expertise:
§ Principals are expected and trained to be instructional leaders. They are
enabled to spend a significant portion of each day in classrooms, coaching for
improved instructional practice.
§ Central office staff who directly support and supervise principals and teachers
are constantly developing their understanding of content knowledge, effective
instructional practices and strategies for how to promote such knowledge and
skills in others.
§ Cadres of teacher leaders are developed to increase the level of instructional
support to classrooms.
5.c. Does the system provide high-quality instructional leaders for all
classrooms in all schools? How? How well?
3. Principals, teachers and staff are seen designing and conducting
professional development activities, modeling lessons in colleagues’
classrooms, serving as data analysis coaches, and encouraging
colleagues to hone their instructional craft.
5c.
Does the system provide highquality instructional leaders for all
classrooms in all schools? How? How
well?
4. The district and teacher union
collaborate on multiple supports that build
the capacity of new teachers, including
orientation, guidance during the opening
days of schools, mentoring and coaching
programs, and training.