Washoe County School District “Every Child, by Name and Face, to Graduation”

In spite of several superintendent turnovers and severe budget cuts, Washoe County School District is moving strongly toward its goal to get all students “college and highly skilled career ready.” In this brief, we show how the district’s commitment to collaboration and attention to “every child, by name and face, to graduation” has led to increased student proficiency and graduation rates, and created a culture of high expectations for educators and students.

This brief is part of the Districts Rising series. Each brief in the series tells the story of a school district and its efforts to raise student achievement and prepare students for college and career. The briefs describe the strategies that districts have employed to raise academic standards for students, improve educator effectiveness, and engage stakeholders in the design and implementation of new policies. Brinton S. Ramsey was the lead author of this brief.