Chapter 8: Sustaining a Culture of Academic Success at a High-Needs Elementary School

In the age of high-stake testing accountability systems, schools are under pressure to show improved student performance. Schools that achieve sustained academic success, particularly those in high-need contexts (i.e., high poverty, high student mobility, and limited resources), often attract the attention of stakeholders. One such case is Robbins Elementary School, the center of this investigation. The purpose of this study is to better understand the sustained high academic performance of Robbins for over 20 years despite several changes of principals. Our findings indicate that successive principals focused on establishing high expectations, distributed leadership, collective responsibility for student learning, and data-based decision making in their effort to maintain strong student performance.