Who Better to Lead the Way?

1 day ago
5 min read

Background

In the autumn of 2024, The Worthy Educator launched a series of convenings to provide a safe forum for educators to come together and discuss the current state of education in a nonpartisan climate, dealing only in facts to build constructive strategies.

We began with a committed core of veteran educators leading these conversations. This was a critical choice because only practitioners live our hopes and heartaches every day, and any map in hand has to match what's happening on the ground. They are in the best position to authentically chart the way forward. Not educelebrities. Not well-financed think tanks. Not self-interested orgs seeking to protect the status quo. Letting them lead got us into this mess. So we amplified the voices of real educators doing the real work, and we invited stakeholders everywhere to join in. Who better to drive the direction of these discussions?

Momentum

We followed the energy of everyone attending, expanding the frequency of our Town Halls and extending our pool of participants, moving from an honest assessment of the state of the profession to a call for action, and as a result we developed an entire advocacy initiative including references, resources, action items, a media kit and a microcredential all designed to support educators in advocating for what is best for children and for public education.

Each gathering came together around a focus that was completely unscripted; we never knew the direction the discussion would go, and it proved to be fruitful as both a healthy collision of ideas and the building of consensus. We hit our high note when we came to the conviction that, in order to reclaim our profession, we need to synthesize everything we know and believe into a Roadmap: a high-level way forward to true transformation, divesting public education of last-century policies and practices, replacing them with systems and structures that meet the demands of this new age, as well as the future still coming into focus.

Synthesis

As we began to bring together everyone’s voice and refine the consistency and flow of the emerging document, we enlisted the help of section leads to inform the ongoing edits and revisions in each area of the Roadmap. Each lead was selected because of their experience and expertise in the particular section to which they were invited to work. This has been critical in vetting this work, in both focusing in on important points at a high level and in drilling down deeper in the details as the runway continued to extend and the implications and considerations kept pushing us to make the Roadmap everything it can be, both as a call to education professionals everywhere and as a practical guide for implementation of its core tenets and outcomes.

Blending so many voices of experience and expertise into one cohesive vision is hard work, heart work, and very Worthy work, and on the date of the second anniversary of the launch of The Worthy Educator - July 8, 2026 - we will proudly present to you the result of 2 years of effort to craft Roadmap 2031. We hope you find it useful as we continue to lead the way forward together.

As participants expressed at our very first convening in the autumn of 2024:

"Kids are demanding changes. Either we change it, or they will change it for us."

- Cynthia Boyd Jacquet

"We have to end working in isolation to collaborate and adapt, and show what this can look like moving forward."

- Donna M. Neary

"We can do this. If we say we need to be first in education, we can do it just like we put a man on the moon!"

- Kati Pearson

These are not radical ideas. Roadmap 2031 is the culmination of decades of practical career experience, designed to be a way forward for educators everywhere doing their part to advance the transformation of our profession as we continue on this journey.

We have worked tirelessly to make the Roadmap as useful and user-friendly as possible. It moves in progression from making the case for the current state of education to framing the work, offering examples and strategies for transformation, culminating in metrics and steps for implementation.

Written by educators, for educators, Roadmap 2031 provides high-level guideposts so that you can fill in the details for moving forward that are a good fit for you and the communities you serve.

In addition, the comprehensive list of resources at its conclusion corresponds with references to research, writing, and case studies embedded across the entire presentation of the Roadmap's vision.

How to make use of Roadmap 2031

For educators, this document is a tool for self-assessing personally and professionally. Use it to check in on your journey: your priorities and values, your perceived efficacy and agency, what you want to accomplish before you’re done, and the legacy you want to leave for those to whom you make the handoff.

Instructionally, Roadmap 2031 provides recommendations and examples for implementing proven practices that position your learning spaces for transformational shifts in how you engage children, their families, community members, and colleagues, empowering everyone to take ownership of their learning, growth, and future, individually and collectively.

Professionally, you are invited to join us in the ongoing iteration of this work. Unlike other documents presenting a vision for the future, Roadmap 2031 is built and maintained entirely by education practitioners doing the work, without influence or input from entities advancing their agendas. Our north star is what’s best for children, and this document is crafted to put in place the conditions and criteria that prepare them to be healthy, happy, meaningful contributors to the world we place in their capable hands.

As an advocate, intentionally refer to the Roadmap when speaking with colleagues, stakeholders, administrators, school boards, local and state education agencies, legislators, and policymakers, to make your case for this emerging vision of education and how it benefits everyone involved, from governance and budgeting to programming and metrics.

To Be Continued!

The Roadmap's publication is not its culmination. It’s the first planting of our flag in the ground on behalf of educators everywhere. As the future unfolds and society continues to evolve, so will the Roadmap, keeping it fresh, relevant, and viable. You can continue to follow its metamorphosis, get the free downloads of the digital version and its accompanying workbook, and purchase paperback copies at cost, all on the official Roadmap 2031 site. We welcome your experience, expertise, and insights as we continue to inform this vibrant living document.

Thank you, Worthy Educators everywhere, for all you do to advance what’s best for children and their future. Hold onto your dreams and dream ON! There is so much to look forward to at the end of this journey!