MarzanoResources.com/HRSExcellence CHALLENGE At the beginning of 2022, Marana Unified School District was hard at work balancing numerous initiatives to continuously improve student outcomes. But according to Kristin Reidy, the district’s assistant superintendent, while Marana’s schools already had strong, long-lasting programs and practices in place, many were being operated in disparate ways. Additionally, schools did not always receive equitable support and resources, limiting both individual school and districtwide efficiency and consistency. “We didn’t need a ton of new [programs],” Kristin explained. “We needed alignment to get everything moving.” But moving from a highly autonomous collection of schools to a unified and collaborative network would require a cultural shift across the district. To coordinate this transformation, Marana turned to Marzano Resources’ High Reliability Schools (HRS) framework. District leadership committed to having every school eventually attain certifications at HRS Levels 1, 2, and 3. Setting this multilevel certification goal at the beginning of the work communicated to school leaders and staff that HRS would not be a transitory initiative but a long- term process of systemic change. Later that year, schools began administering HRS surveys to assess strengths and identify areas for growth at Level 1 of the framework. The improvement and certification efforts officially launched in the summer of 2023. IMPLEMENTATION Marana schools adopted new operational structures to implement initiatives and address issues. “We leveraged the collaborative team as the engine at the school sites,” Kristin explained. For example, the district had identified elementary literacy as a priority and created a literacy task force that recommended a new reading curriculum. Each school created collaborative teams focused on literacy to facilitate this curricular change and improve literacy instruction. Kristin explained that while changes like a new curriculum often cause a short-term dip in performance as teachers and students adjust, the support from the HRS structures helped Marana avoid this drop-off. As the district worked toward Level 1 certification, they began planning for Level 2, which emphasized effective teaching. According to Kristin, work at Level 2 allowed teachers to become reacquainted with the model of instruction. Administrators and teachers spent an entire year reviewing the model. For the first time, every teacher had an instructional growth goal tied to the district model, allowing for continuous improvement in instructional practice and the alignment of professional learning opportunities to teachers’ individual goals. The HRS framework also ensured continuity during leadership changes. In 2024, the district had four new principals and five new assistant principals, including three positions filled by internal candidates. The common language and expectations around HRS enabled leaders to quickly adjust to their new roles, ensuring smooth and consistent operations across their schools. “Support must precede accountability,” Kristin emphasized, making sure that Marana schools received consistent district support, such as instructional coaches, to meet high standards. “HRS has helped us organize and systemize our work,” she said. MARANA UNIFIED SCHOOL DISTRICT MARANA, ARIZONA 12,860 STUDENTS / 25.5% FREE OR REDUCED LUNCH / 10% SPECIAL NEEDS 49.6% WHITE / 40.8% HISPANIC OR LATINO / 5.01% MULTIRACIAL / <2% AMERICAN INDIAN OR ALASKA NATIVE / <2% ASIAN / <2% BLACK / <2% NATIVE HAWAIIAN OR PACIFIC ISLANDER . High Reliability Schools (HRS) framework . Attain certification at HRS Levels 1, 2, and 3 EVIDENCE OF EXCELLENCE
