Creating Instructional Leaders

The transformation of Tennessee’s third largest school district, Knox County Schools, underscores the critical role that school leaders play in driving systemwide change. At its core was a shift from operational management to instructional leadership, requiring assistant principals, principals, and principals’ district supervisors to get closer to classroom practice. Before this shift, the district was “confusing activity with progress,” recalled Superintendent Dr. Jon Rysewyk. Despite new initiatives and constant meetings, there was little alignment around what students were actually learning. The district moved away from operating like a bureaucratic system toward a focused instructional system grounded in strong leadership, a unified curriculum, and clear expectations. Jabari Sims, Executive Director of District Partnerships at Instruction Partners, said: “Today, the teachers in Knox County are teaching the curriculum like they wrote it themselves. They get the vision—because the leaders were clear on what they wanted to see.”