The SLC is the key piece of the Collaborative School Leadership initiative that was included in the most recent agreement between the district and the NTU. Union/Management collaborative partnerships have proven to positively impact educational quality and contribute to overall district improvement by:
- Empowering educator collaboration in schools
- Providing a mechanism for shared decision-making
- Supporting goal alignment
- Increasing and amplifying educator voice
- Encouraging innovation from educators within districts and schools
- Focusing all efforts on Teaching and Learning
Additionally, high functioning SLCs lead to quality decisions made by the people closest to the problem and produce more solutions that direct resources to key issues. When teachers and administration work together on innovations to improve teaching and learning, a positive climate is created in the district and in schools, trust is built, and better opportunities for communication and information sharing emerge.
Finally, a summary of the research outlined in Democracy and Reform in Public Schools: The Case for Collaborative Partnerships, by Rubinstein, Heckscher, and McCarthy, reveals the following:
- Union-Management partnerships lead to more extensive collaboration between educators within schools
- Collaboration Improves student performance in ELA and Math even after controlling for poverty
- Collaborative climates increase the attractiveness of schools to teachers
- Strong collaboration reduces the impact of poverty on teacher turnover and increases educator and community engagement
