Name: Customer Spotlight Panel: Why Renaissance
Uploaded: 2026-09-29T15:15:06.959Z
Duration: 36 min 12 s
Description: Customer Spotlight Panel: Why Renaissance

Transcript for "Customer Spotlight Panel: Why Renaissance": up. Alright. Good morning. And we're all set here. All set to go. Good morning. Good morning. Thanks for hopping in. Alright. Make sure everybody's got their coffee, got their water, if they enjoy some tea, whatever you enjoy. Thanks for being here. Thanks for, listening to doctor Kern's presentation. Hopefully, it went very well. We had a very great group, in the chat, the q and a. Again, please feel free to put that in there if you have questions or things you'd like us to clarify on. Thank you so much, for doing so. Again, we are welcomed here with a chief academic officer, Angela Sims, from Distinctive Schools out of Illinois. We are very, very happy. This is, one of my personal favorite parts of the present. K. But couldn't be more excited here to have a conversation, with chief academic officer Angela Sims. So we will get started right away here. Again, any questions, any things you want us to go over, or if there's questions or things that you would like to specifically hear from Ross, myself, or, Angela, we will go ahead and get started here. But, with that, Angela, thanks for taking some time out of your day to have some questions and have a really great conversation with us. Ross, sir, I will hand it over to you. Yeah. I'm gonna kick it right up and tee you up, Angela. Would love to hear just, your your prior experience as an educator first and foremost. Tell us a little bit about that background, and a little bit about Distinctive Schools and the organization that you currently work for. Sure. Thanks for that. Good morning. I am I am a chief academic officer, but I consider myself a lifelong teacher. Of course, I started my career, as a teacher, substitute teacher in fact, and then became a licensed teacher. I've held several roles, from everything from, coach instructional coach, assistant principal, principal, for, over twelve years. I led at at the district, district level, executive director of all professional learning, for my district, and now I am at Distinctive Schools. Distinctive Schools is a school management organization. We, manage eight schools here in Chicago. The schools range from everywhere from kindergarten through twelfth grade. So we have eight campuses, that we run, and they are throughout the city of Chicago. So we have some on the South Side, North Side, Northwest Side. So we're located throughout the city. And in my role, I support everything teaching and learning, for our network. Perfect. Perfect. Appreciate that. Now our our relationship, they began, I guess, gosh, go back, five, six months ago. I think it was early April when we, sat down for our initial conversation with, you know, with with Renaissance. Can you can you identify, share with us some of the key priorities that you had as chief academic advisor, officer, there, and the challenges you were trying to address, before that partnership began with Renaissance? Sure. As I stated, we are, in eight campuses across Chicago and, all urban settings, k through eight. And I think, the keynote felt like it was speaking to me again. We, are in great need of acceleration of learning for our students. We have students that, are not yet proficient and in varying degrees, proficiency, and just really wanting to make sure that we have stronger outcomes for our students. And, at the time, we have, we had several different, high quality curriculum, that we are in use as well as, a different assessment platform. We were developing plans when we think about acceleration. Also thinking about MTSS structure. So not just tier one, but also thinking about what are the tier two and tier three supports for our students. And at the time, we have what I call, a very Frankenstein model of really piecing together lots of different, curriculum, supports, and resources, which, as I said, I consider myself a teacher. I'm sure from an instructional lens or as a teacher lens feels very disjointed, and quite frustrating. So I can only imagine the experience of students. So one of the first, priorities outside of really creating accelerate accelerating learning for our students was really ensuring that there is some coherence, in the instructional materials we we use, something more comprehensive so that, there is a stronger, link and connection, between the ways in which we're thinking about, providing enrichment for students, acceleration for students, just in time supports to students, being very clear about how, an assessment, that we're maybe using to screen and identify, where students may need is, you know, directly connected to, the curriculum and support. So, I think when I met Ross, Max, and team, I was at a place of really thinking about, what is that that can help, you know, fill that, gap that we were experiencing. Very clear about what we needed wanted to do. Just what we weren't finding, a lot of resources that were, able to do that. Gotcha. Well, thanks so much, Angela, for that and understanding how you move through this process of partnering with Renaissance. So what are a couple of things that stood out to you throughout the process? I heard a couple of things that Frankenstein model. You're looking for more of that coherence. Mhmm. But kinda how that rolled out for you as you move throughout that process of, you know, what you like, what was helpful just from a perspective of your sites and your schools. Sure. Well, I guess I can preface all this as saying I wasn't I'm not completely new to Renaissance. We had used, lots of the Renaissance suite in my previous, roles at district level as well as, as a school, leader. So I was familiar, with, some of particularly Star, Freckle, Nearpod. There's quite a few I'm definitely familiar with, so it wasn't completely foreign and new. We were current at the time using, an interim assessment, slash assessment that, wasn't necessarily as strongly, providing us with, accurate or predictive, indicators for how our students would perform on state assessments. But then also, there weren't strong connections and links to, the high quality curriculums that we have selected. And particularly, our high quality curriculum for math, one of the things that as we were looking to really think about, greater coherence even within, thinking about how we assess pre assessment and a lot of others, Renaissance kept coming up. And, they kept saying how there were, the linkages they were linked, to our current, curriculum. And I started the more I would you know, we would research and look, we would start to see, the stronger correlations that were there. One of the other things that we knew particularly with the assessment, that we were administering for students, it took quite a bit of time, to administer. And one of the things that I had remembered, about STAR was, the timing, that, you know, it would take less than half an hour, to particularly screen of students. So students weren't spending considerable amount of times on assessment, but getting accurate, data and information, that would then inform, the next steps for instruction, but also creating personalized paths, for students. So just really thinking about a lot of those different factors. Distinctive Schools is a personalized learning network. I say that. I'm kinda chuckling now. As we talked about, the keynote and just really thinking about personalized learning can have a multitude and a myriad of, kind of meanings depending on, you know, who's using it. But one of the things that we really wanted to make sure, was a part of that was, yes, making sure the students have personalized pathways, that will prepare them and provide them with the supports that they need at that moment. But another, big part of what we're trying to, achieve is also agency, allowing students to really exercise the agency that they have. So really looking at all of the different, things that were offered with, Renaissance, and just really looking at how it met the need, how a lot of the things that we were doing actually, fit right in. So, I mean, it felt like a natural fit. So as we started to have the conversations, it just it actually just made sense. I don't know if at the time it was very interesting listening to the, keynote. I didn't know at the time that, part of the the mission is, like, acceleration accelerating learning for all, but, that was, like, our biggest, you know, priority at the time. Just really making sure that we're accelerating learning for all our students so that they are achieving at those those higher levels. Hope I. answered. your question, like I said, rambling. You Just perfect. you hit every keynote there, a 100%, and it's like going back in time, thinking back to those initial conversations with you. Right? And kinda going through that process as a former school administrator myself, oftentimes, I feel as though we we begin these conversations with the assessment in mind. And I think that's what initiated these conversations was some unmet need, that we'd identified with previous assessment and, the interest in STAR just from previous exposure, at the district level there. And so, what began as conversation around STAR quickly then began to take on its own identity of Renaissance Intelligence. And, I think that you had said, at at the time, you know, look, like, we're open to anything. If it's gonna if it's gonna help our teachers become more efficient, if it's gonna help our teachers to be able to personalize those individual plans and become a much more coherent, instruction, you know, ecosystem, so to speak. Going back to STAR. Right? Because I think STAR, from what I've heard, in today's, webinar, it it it's kinda become the star of the show, so to speak. Right? Pun intended. But, we also had conversations about FastBridge. Right? They are distinctive schools. And in doing so, your guys' model is set up this year. So so to have the DISTAR assessment serve as your your benchmark for all of your students there, they're gonna take that, what, you know, three to four times a year. But we've also got that set up for FastBridge for your tier two and your tier three tier three students. Can you can you speak a little bit about that and how anybody who's on the call today who may be star users could potentially utilize FastBridge as a secondary assessment as well? Sure. So really thinking about, a large scale, screener or, you know, assessment such as a star, even, you know, though it's adaptive, we're really thinking about, it does give you, an idea of where to start, and just really thinking about, where students, may need more support. Particularly, of course, definitely, you know, the communication with, like, Freckle and a lot of the others, it feeds into a learning path. However, particularly in the, space where students are, in need of more intensive support, and more, to accelerate the learning for them, FastBridge allows us to, screen a little bit, you know, to to actually, drill down a little bit further to identify specifically, what students what skills students may be in need of, while also providing, a pathway specific, to that particular intervention or intensive support, to really make sure that it's targeted and specific to what they need, to be able to, do that in, you know, a a faster manner. I always when I talk to teachers and talk to everyone, I always kinda relate STAR as, when you go to the doctor, you get blood work. And you get, you know, they do the the panels, and they may say, well, we need to look more closely at these numbers. And they may say we're gonna do additional testing. So FastBridge is that additional testing to really then, you know, really hone in on, a particular area to really identify what is the specific, targeted approach that we need to do. So I always kinda look at it that way. So FastBridge is that where it really allows us to really pinpoint, and be much more specific about, where support is needed. Yeah. I love that. Awesome. Well, I will hop on, Angela. I heard something earlier that I'm actually obsessed with time. Uh-oh. We have no no. You're totally good. You're totally good. We're actually talking earlier about schedules and, you know, you have blocks of time to help students and to accelerate their learning. So we do have time constraints with our students. In a perfect world, we'd love to have them all day every day. It doesn't work that way, unfortunately, or fortunately, because we all need a little break. But I was hearing earlier, and I loved it, is time and being efficient, almost ruthlessly efficient with your time with your students. So just wondering, as you move through the process, Yeah. this year and now you're into kind of the past that back to school season, what have you found to be really great advice on efficiency of time or as you were alluding to earlier about being, really, direct with your time with students? So I know it's kind of a broad question, but, kind of what have you learned through the process? Sure. I mean, I think the biggest thing, that I have learned and, like, I've really pushed particularly, within our network and I was really big about was, let's let's not wait. So, I think initially, it felt when we first got started, of course, Renaissance was new to the network. So a lot of there was a lot of folks that were, like, very, like, nervous, like, what is how is this different than, you know, what we had in the past? And I'm like, let's let's just let's just jump in. So, we actually, administered STAR, first week of school. So we actually there wasn't, like, this huge gap of let's let's start school and get it rolling. We actually, jumped in that first week, and immediately had the data. And it was very interesting because folks were very excited, when they started to see the data. They started to see where their students were, and really ready to jump into action. They really start to think about what was next. So, just really one being very intentional about when we started this work, this wasn't something that we wanted to hold off on. But then also then taking this, particular data and not just sitting on it, but then actually really thinking about what does this mean for, like, what's next. Quite naturally since, a lot of our students are in very critical places and really knowing that we want to see, like, that growth, it was very important that we got started right away. And we were very responsive with the data that we had. So not just, you know, taking the assessment, but then, like, let's looking at the data. Let's look at what this this means, and let's look at what what comes from this. So I think one of the the biggest ways is one, being very responsive to where, you know, our teachers are and what the need was, recognizing that this was something was new, but, also, communicating, just how important it is. I think because one of the things that was also important was the length of the assessment. Knowing that, students sometimes can sit and become very frustrated, the things that we were able to communicate with students about, like, this is not gonna take the entire period. This can take up, you know, maybe a half an hour and not persisting, you know, like, really longer with something and really thinking about it also created a different level of incentive for students. Knowing that that data was, in real time also, like, really, you know, supported them. In fact, it was it was very interesting when the students actually, took the first, assessment. Many of them were like, well, what's my score? Like, really wanting to see, what came from that, to the point where, like, a lot of teachers like, well, can the students see it immediately? We're saying no. You can communicate that to them. However, I think that is, I guess, the beauty of Renaissance and that a lot of what we have with Intel is, like, really baked in. So it wasn't where we had to wait and really start to sit down and desegregate the data and try to figure out what's next. It was a lot of that is already kind of done for the teachers in a way, to help them to actually know what to do next. If there were a student that needed to actually, really then think about, like, FastBridge or, in some instances, we have some students that were taking the, early the star for, our early readers. I think we knew we needed to give them star. In fact, we have some that were worked the opposite way. We gave them star, and we knew we needed to do it for early literacy. So, it worked in ways where it allowed us to actually start to, put a plan in place, much faster, and really start to actually, I guess, get to the the work, that sometimes would take, I guess, weeks for teachers to really start to disaggregate the data and look at it. And then until because of all of the strong connections, it also then does link to, say, the math curriculum, in ways where they can also then start to think about, how do I pull in and support, students with this particular, unit? If we're, you know, learning fractions, how can I go back and look at where fractions may have appeared in previous grades and really, be able to support it and have a plan for it? So I think for us, the ways in which we were able to save time are because one, we jumped in and started right away. But, because of how, comprehensive and coherent, Renaissance Intel is right now, it allowed us to really be able to make decisions much faster, and be able to be much more responsive to what we're seeing in the data. Awesome. And, Thank teachers don't, have. what. to figure. And out. isn't a all. isn't everyone that's listening? Like, it's just so awesome to hear this. You know, from from going back to April, those initial conversations with Angela and team, they're distinctive to to now fast forward three months into your implementation because you guys went live with us July 1 to hear how far you've come. And sure. Right? Some of that probably from past experience having utilized. But for all of those, you know, prospective customers, current users, right, I think my my takeaway from what Angela just said is, you know, change is hard. Right? Change is hard for anybody. Change for educators perhaps is even harder. We go from one assessment or one, go to that's comfy, you know, solution, and all of a sudden now we're jumping full force, ahead for Renaissance Intelligence. I I am I am very pleased to hear that that initial, back to school week of getting them into one Renaissance all was met, with some some students beginning to own their learning. Right? Taking autonomy over the data that they're gonna then put forward because we all know that's the name of the game as educators is giving those students, some ownership over what they're doing day in, day out. Talk to me a little bit, Angela, about that scale. Right? You guys are eight different campuses. You're full force, into, Renaissance Intelligence now. It's a it's a big elephant, right, to to chewing. that first year, and and it sounds yet like you guys have an organized plan in terms of how you want to chunk that out. Tell us a little bit about Distinctive's view on how you want to get the most out of Renintel this year and then what your road map is for going forward. Sure. I mean, I think the plan for this year, was really one, to make sure, that we were, administering STAR, in a way, with integrity, but then also, utilizing, what was in, I guess, Freckle, as well as Lililo. I might be saying it wrong, and then FastBridge. So, one of the things that, we knew, that was, you know, going throughout was because we were looking for, you know, much more coherent system between assessment and, instruction and the instructional materials we used, we knew that at at the very base level, we wanted to make sure that everyone had an understanding of those things. We, everything is available to, like, our staff and teams. So what we are finding is that even because, it is there and because they're starting to see the results and it's so accessible, and as it was pointed out in the keynote, all of it is there when you think about, like, what are the next steps. Most people, those that are definitely much more more curious, they're clicking and they're going through, you know, and, like, really utilizing a lot of the other, tools that are there. So we didn't wanna overwhelm anyone, but we wanted to make sure that at the very least, they can see how they can take the data, that they're receiving from, STAR and actually starting to incorporate and utilize it in instruction. Also identifying, some of the immediate tools that would provide them with, individualized, like, learning pathways, but then also additional ways to, like, really measure student learning. As we progress, definitely wanting to layer in a lot of the other resources, that exist. We've even had some, team, like, really playing around with, like, Starphonics and a lot of the others just to really start to see, like, as we see this need or as we see this trend, how can we, like, really start to to dibble on this? And we like to, like, really celebrate and create a space where people can, actually create, you know, their own you know, find the agent you utilize their agency in learning. So we're we're seeing that even with our staff and our teachers. But it's really funny because as we were drilling, we're like, oh, this student is in there. How did they find this? So also, you know, no one is, you know, preventing, the other spaces. But one, we're really trying to, one, master being very familiar with, the data that we get from the assessments and what are the ways that we can respond to it. And I think as we become more familiar in that, people are much more comfortable to then start to branch out and utilize a lot of the other resources that are there. I think initially, it was kinda like, I don't think we need all of this. This was you know, our initial was like, do we need all of this? But I'm actually now glad that we have all of it, although we're not necessarily pushing all of them. They are the resources, that are available, and we're starting to see more and more people starting to, like, really branch out and utilize them because we know that, all of it can really benefit our students. We just really wanna make sure that, it feels this our staff feels supportive and feels confident in using. I I tell you what, Angela. It it it's almost as if you were a former teacher because you you you aren't doing you aren't doing the gradual release with your staff. Right? Let them let them uncover what what is there for them right now. You have a plan in place with your leaders, not to overwhelm, but as those, those proactive teachers get in there and dig around and play in the sandbox, so to speak, they're gonna uncover what that potential is. And what that does, in my eyes, is it cultivates that positivity amongst other teachers. Right? As they're sitting for a. collaborative planning session, they're like, hey. Did you guys realize we had access to MYOB? We have all of these books that we can bring into our classroom libraries now. And and not only on top of that, they can go take an AR quiz after they've read that book. So, kudos to you for the way in which you've rolled it out. Max, I'm gonna tee you up here for a question around professional development. Awesome. Thank you, sir. Angela, question is about professional learning, professional development. So, former admin and me, sometimes change is really actually fairly easy with students because they like to adapt, they like to adjust, they like to try new things. And then there's a little bit change management with the staff and the. teachers. So as you, work through earlier talking about and Ross kinda hit on too is when they have ownership and buy in, it always goes smoother. It always goes better. It goes more efficient. So as you are working through partnering with Renaissance and thinking through what this looks like, how did you keep at the forefront professional development, professional learning for your staff to really achieve the goal like you were saying? I didn't wanna overwhelm them. I didn't wanna give them too much, but allow them to be comfortable and confident using these products throughout the year. So how did you think through that as as the leader of the system schools? Sure. It's twofold. I mean, I think when I think of, like, the staff, I think of, my network staff, so the staff that actually, you know, supports the schools, our school leaders, instructional leaders, and then I think of, the teachers. And I think one of the biggest things that had to come first when we think about change management was, being very clear, and honest and transparent about why the shift. And really thinking about, one, making it, you know, communicating very clearly about, the shift that was happening, making sure folks understood why, we were making this pivot and shift, and then really then understanding, like, what the concerns may be. And I think in hearing a lot of those questions and hearing a lot of that feedback allowed us to really make sure that we were creating a plan that was responsive to that. And in part of us being transparent and sharing, like, what the plan was or sharing what, this move and pivot was, we actually took into account a lot of, the frustrations and the things that were shared about the previous, type of resources and things that we used, and then use that as a method to really then roll this out. So, I think the first part was just, like, really being, you know, clear in communication and making sure we're hearing, what people are saying. Second, really making sure that my network, team was able to really be able to also communicate the same, types of, information to schools and being of support, on a very basic level. Just making sure folks feel very comfortable, with, utilizing, the system, the platform, the different resources that are there. And what we've learned through that process, even in that was the easiest way is allowing them to experience it. We ran into, I won't call it a snafu, but there were some lots of nerves around beginning implementation because of the way, our network uses their SIS system and rots their students. So many of the, teachers and even network staff did not see, RIN intel outside of the sandbox, I'll call it, until, a week before school started. So, they weren't able to do a lot of the things in real time or feel like it was sticking, until then. So, a lot of what we did was, we would provide, and we we're continuing to do this. We'll provide, a sort of informational session slash, you know, demonstration, give space, provide space to, like, really, you know, utilize it. Then once they are in the system, you know, really fielding and, you know, accepting a lot of the questions, concerns, and looking at what comes from implementation, and then planning a follow-up to really be in response to that. We also when we planned out our year for, professional learning, really took into account that all of these things were new. So, being very quick in, even the turnaround of thinking about, okay. So we have this data. Now what? So not waiting a long time in between a lot of those sessions to really start to think about how do we use them. We now have, upcoming sessions on, really thinking about intel. So a lot of it was, one, really thinking about how do you create the experiences, to make sure that whatever they're learning in professional development and learning, is relevant to them. They've experienced it and understood it. But one, being very clear about how we're using it and what we're using it for. But then also, I think, balancing that with, like I said before, creating, like, a safe space to really be able to, experiment or, you know, kind of, you know, play around. There is, the actual, resources within the educator academy that have also been really helpful. So just really thinking about what are the ways that if it's something that we haven't necessarily talked about, we haven't directly addressed, really, ensuring that we're providing the space, and knowledge to know where can I find this information? So I think a lot of it was I think sometimes when we think about, like, implementation, we want to be very rigid and structured and, like, really setting it. And a lot of it was being very responsive to where our teachers are and making it, you know, connected, to the experiences that are happening on the campuses so that they definitely, feel more confident, when using it. But, also, we want them to be bought in. We don't want them to feel like this is something that has been done to us and has been pushed on us. And I think because of that, a lot of folks there's lots of excitement around, what is there, as well as, an interest in how to, like, really take it and utilize it. So, I mean, I think that was, like, some of the biggest pieces for me, Knowing that it could be a strong resource for our teachers and in response to a lot of the concerns that were already shared, it was very important to make sure, one, we communicated just that, show what this was, but then also make sure that, we were responsive along the way, so what they're sharing and what the needs are. Amazing. Awesome. Well, in honor of Angela I'm gonna hand it to Ross here. He's got one more question but it's it has been an absolute pleasure to listen to your thoughtfulness as you build that out. So again huge thank you. Thanks for having a great conversation with myself. Ross I'll hand over to you sir to wrap up last question. Yeah. I got, I got a doozy for you. I'm gonna throw you a curveball and. ask you to to think outside the box, Angela, here. I I had, had shared with you prior to today's call that, the audience for today, we absolutely have a lot of charters, networks, and school districts, the the typical brick and mortar, right, in which you live in and resided in. But we're also, privileged to have the the boys and girls clubs, the tutoring centers, microschools, and things that are a little bit more in that gray area of education Mhmm. right now in that space. So as an educator, right, what would your 2¢ be worth there on, I assume, right, that many of your students go to after school tutoring centers, you know, for that after school, kid care, so to speak. What advantages do you see as if you were to put that hat on of a an after school club to, begin to dabble into this renaissance intelligence conversation. Sure. I think what I mean, I think it it makes sense. I mean, I think when we think about coherence and, you know, having, students to have a very clear through line, in the experiences that they're having. As we talked about, in the keynote, just really thinking about in order to truly accelerate learning, there has to be those connections and very clear coherence. Meaning, although we know students may need all of you know, lots of different things, the more that is connected to, their tier one or day to day experience in classrooms, and really, teeing them up and setting them up to be successful in those settings, I think the better. So, I think when we think about, Renaissance, in various spaces, it makes sense. We actually have spaces where our students do have extended learning either before school, after school, really thinking about, summer learning, all the different things. And I think something like, REN Intel really, allows them there to be a grader through line and coherence. Definitely, you know, there should be some communication, I guess, between, like, the schools and understanding of what students are learning. However, just even the option of being able to link, state standards as well as, a lot of, high quality curriculum and just really being able to connect in those ways, it's just, you know, for me, it's very exciting. I as an organization, we actually and this was one of the things that prompted us to really, you know, seek out and really dig in and find something that felt much more comprehensive. We were partnering with, a different organization to provide some tier three supports or some direct, intensive tutoring for students. And it wasn't until the end of the year when we started looking at the data, and we, our students, we didn't see the results that we had anticipated. And, in uncovering a lot of through conversation and then asking for lots of data, what we learned was that, what the actual, organization was providing for students was not directly connected one to state standards or our curriculum. So whereas it may have been something that through their screener and information was identified that students needed, it didn't lead to, I guess, the strong results for students and actually acceleration, that we were hoping for. So when looking at the the table, we think about personalized learning, we probably would have been moving towards the left in some situations with students, because good. we're lagging far behind. So I think in this particular instance, it definitely would be an asset to actually have, resources such as rent and tell, for students because it allows the opportunity to really be able to make those connections, to what they're learning in school. And it makes sense for students where they're not having totally different experiences. So I I think. for me, I think it's a wonderful opportunity. Yeah. You know? And I and I I think, Dee, to even multiply on top of that, like, the the connection to home. Right? So if we can have this this school life, this after kid care life where, you know, some kids are are spending an hour or two before they're at home, and then they could take that information and apply it, at home as well. Then, like, as you stated, we have that linear coherent instruction taking place, uniformity throughout so the kids can navigate, simplistically. So, again, I wanna echo Max's sentiments. A true honor today. Appreciate you, allowing us to to put you on the hot seat and, answer some questions with us. For those of us, that are still tuned in, for the agenda, I want to make sure, that you, click in the top left hand corner where it says agenda. We're gonna transition over to breakout sessions in which you have some autonomy over which session to attend. So with that, we will see you in individual, breakout sessions here shortly. Thank you.