Releasing the Floodgates of Innovation

Case Study: Rowan-Salisbury School System (Salisbury, N.C.)

How Constraints Fueled Creativity—and State Policy Changes—in a Once Low Performing District

In 2015, North Carolina State declared the Rowan-Salisbury School System a “low performing district.” By 2016, the state had removed the status from the district. Today, the majority all of Rowan-Salisbury’s thirty-four schools no longer have this designation. The incredible turnaround of this large district, which serves a primarily under-privileged student population, began six years ago, when a new leadership team made a key, early decision: to shift the district to a one-to-one technology program.

With this single decision, the entire district was primed to be fearless as they transitioned to a culture of innovation. Despite budgetary constraints and the realities of state mandates, the district was able to dream big and act with ingenuity to overcome limitations and innovate in the best interests of students. So much so that the state government took note.

The district’s leaders would go onto collaborate with state lawmakers to enact policy that would allow for even bolder change across the Rowan-Salisbury School System and, in time, will hopefully allow for other North Carolina school districts to follow suit.