Why School Boards Now Need to Think Bigger and Act Boldly on Careers
School boards can be a powerful partner for administrators in helping communities and families understand major changes within their local districts. The bigger the project, the more important it is for board members to build support and buy-in. Take Danbury Public Schools in Connecticut, which launched a 3,000-student comprehensive career academy in 2024. Known as The Academies, the model features 21 specialized pathways from biomedical to education to applied engineering.
Launching The Academies required families and the community to adopt an entirely different way of thinking about combining rigorous academics and real-world, hands-on instruction. Luisa M. Zagottis-Britton, who chairs the Danbury Board of Education, was part of the monumental task of explaining the model and earning support. In this new piece for District Administration, she describes the board’s strategies, challenges, and lessons learned along the way.
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