Student Ownership

Student Ownership details a specific set of strategies used by a case study school to effectively triple the school’s number of college and/or career ready students over a two year period. The school moved from the bottom 5 percent in the state in transition readiness for students to the top 5 percent by implementing strategies that helped the students take ownership of their futures by implementing these strategies. In addition, companion strategies are included that were used to change the minds of the teachers and administrators in order to establish ownership in the minds of their students. This book will help you establish student empowerment and ownership of their learning in your school culture.

This is one of those rare books that focuses on a relevant and critical element necessary for real and authentic student learning. When educators have the knowledge and skills to cause students to own their own learning, like those so clearly demonstrated here by Dr. Lewis Willian and Dr. Rocky Wallace  – life trajectories are transformed., Drs. Wallace and Willian provide practical ideas and strategies around a new paradigm in student ownership and teacher empowerment. They have creatively given practical strategies housed within clever and real school examples. The offer a research-based, realistic approach for schools on how to handle the matter of student ownership., The work outlined here by Dr. Willian is the step by step process and model used to lead our school to the designation of distinction in the state of Kentucky.  Willian and Wallace’s book is an excellent read for personal growth, leadership, staff development and could be used as a guide to improve culture, climate and student achievement within any school setting. , The Student Ownership Initiative (SOI) book is an easy read and useful resource for teachers and school administrators in their quest to improve Career and College Readiness data.  If ever there was a “how to document”, this is it!  I have witnessed first-hand how Dr. Lewis Willian used this material to transform a low performing school to one of the top ranked in CCR in Kentucky.  If implemented with fidelity, your school too will likely celebrate increased CCR success!

Dr. Lewis Willian is an assistant professor at Asbury University. He has 33 years of experience in Kentucky as a teacher, principal, state school turnaround agent, district official and university professor. This book is based on actual events that occurred in a turnaround school.Dr. Rocky Wallace is an associate professor at Asbury University. He has 38 years of experience in Kentucky as a teacher, principal, state leadership consultant to school principals, director of instructional support at an education cooperative, and university professor. Wallace has written four books on servant leadership in the school setting for Rowman & Littlefield, and with this project co-authored three other books on school improvement for R &L.