Pathways to Potential Provides Support in Schools

Superintendent and educational consultant Deborah Wahlstrom cofounded Successline, Inc., a company dedicated to offering tools to improve education, in 1994. During her tenure as superintendent at Mount Clemens Community Schools, Deborah Wahlstrom helped implement the Pathways to Potential program through the Department of Human Services (DHS) in Michigan.

Pathways to Potential is a program created by the DHS to provide better services to kids in schools. The program brings social workers, success coaches, and attendance coaches directly into the schools in order to remove barriers to attendance and otherwise provide support to get kids in school so that they stay and succeed there.

By going directly into the affected communities, the Pathways to Potential staff get to know the particular challenges and possibilities of a certain neighborhood. The staff then help to set up long-term networks so the families in the communities can continue to access support after the program ends. Overall, the program helps provide extra support to struggling schools, and as a result, attendance and academic performance improve in the long term.

Together for Tomorrow Supports School Improvement

Deborah Wahlstrom is an educational consultant and the founder of Successline, Inc., a company that supports school improvement. From 2012 to 2015, Deborah Wahlstrom served as the superindendent of Mount Clemens Community Schools. While she was superindendent, Mount Clemens was recognized in the Together for Tomorrow Challenge.

The Together for Tomorrow initiative is a collaboration between the US Department of Education, the Corporation for National and Community Service, and the White House Office of Faith-based and Neighborhood Partnerships. It is intended to recognize and support community-led projects and programs that help support struggling schools.

Together for Tomorrow celebrates and encourages family and community engagement with students and schools in part by measuring the ABCs of student outcomes: Attendance, Behavior, and College access. Some of the initiatives the program has supported nationwide include after-school tutoring from community members, school improvement grants, and partnerships with local organizations like the Boys and Girls Clubs that can provide mentors to students in need.

The Urban Services Doctoral Degree from Old Dominion

School district superintendent Dr. Deborah Wahlstrom previously served as president of Successline Inc. in Suffolk, Virginia. Dr. Deborah Wahlstrom is an alumnus of Old Dominion University, from which she earned her bachelor’s degree in biology, her master’s degree in educational administration and academic leadership, and her PhD in urban services and academic leadership.

As a part of the School of Public Service, the PhD program in public administration and urban policy aims to equip graduates with the skills and experience necessary to manage and improve conditions in urban areas. This advanced degree program can serve as a base for positions in many careers, including city policy, counseling, or school administration positions, such as a principal or district superintendent.

The urban services doctoral degree program offers a variety of focus areas, including school administration and supervision, special education, curriculum and instruction, and early childhood education. As a part of this PhD program, students are required to complete a significant amount of coursework and dissertation hours while maintaining a 3.0 grade point average. These classes and independent research are aimed to prepare students to develop and improve the public schools of the future.

A Primer on Data Use in Public Schools

An accomplished education leader, Deborah Wahlstrom most recently served as superintendent of Mt. Clemens Community Schools in Mt. Clemens, Michigan. In her time as superintendent, Deborah Wahlstrom spearheaded successful initiatives such as using data to increase student achievement.

In recent decades, data has become one of the most important factors driving curriculum development and decision making in public schools. A catchall term for information, educational data can refer to a number of things, including test scores, classroom assessment results, report cards, and observational notes. Other forms of educational data include attendance counts, behavioral reports, and student demographics.

Research has shown that the highest performing schools use data of all kinds to guide decision making. While the planned use of data typically leads to improvements in teacher practice, school culture, and student achievement, there are a number of barriers that can prevent schools from effectively using the data they have collected.

In addition to a lack of time and resources, problems with tools and systems for data collection and analysis can get in the way of effective data use. To overcome some of these issues, many schools today are using teacher-led collaborative groups, such as professional learning communities, to help interpret data, identify learner- and practice-centered problems, and implement data-driven instructional plans.                            

The Together for Tomorrow Challenge

The superintendent of Mount Clemens Community School District in Michigan, Deborah Wahlstrom focuses on improving school performance via data analysis and targeted assistance for failing schools. In 2012, Superintendent Deborah Wahlstrom accepted the Together for Tomorrow Challenge award on behalf of Mount Clemens Community Schools.

A federal program initiated by the U.S. Department of Education, the Together for Tomorrow School Improvement Challenge brought together schools, community organizations, universities, and national service programs to improve low-performing schools. The challenge encouraged participants to build schools’ capacities for teamwork and incorporate support from a variety of public and private sources. In addition to building a culture of success in education, participants attempted to boost key measurable student outcomes, such as attendance, behavior, and course performance.

To enter the Together for Tomorrow Challenge, applicants were asked to fill out a questionnaire, describe how they strengthened their schools’ capacity, and explain how their initiatives addressed student needs. In October 2012, the Together for Tomorrow Challenge named 31 winners from across the United States.