UCLA

This study examined the impact the strategy of leading from the middle has on becoming a learning organization. The leading from the middle strategy offers an opportunity for site leadership teams to focus on a few systemic goals with transparency and a collective voice to boost positive student outcomes. The research design is a mixed-methods, single-district case study. The study's sample was comprised of interview transcripts from 11 teachers and administrators and 85 School Leadership Team (SLT) members' responses to a survey that measured the before and after effects of the LfM strategy implementation across 28 TK-8 sites in a large urban district. After collecting mixed methods of data, including comparing pre-and post-survey data, I identified patterns of collaborative learning opportunities, inclusive cohort structures, and enhanced pedagogical practices to improve student learning. My findings from the interviews and surveys characterize the efforts of School Leadership Teams (SLTs) around the focus on the dimensions of a learning organization (Kools & Stoll, 2016) a shared vision, professional learning, team learning, and systems for exchanging knowledge. Additionally, patterns emerged within the findings that depict how leading from the middle may have contributed to increased feelings of elevated trust toward peers, central office cohort members, and capacity building at the relational, instructional, and organizational levels. These findings were central markers of changes in the feelings of agency within SLT members. My findings suggest that LfM contributed toward Discovery School District becoming a learning organization.