The Dream Team: How Collaboration Transformed Tuscaloosa City Schools

Ever wondered what it takes to transform struggling schools into success stories? Dr. Tonya Cruz reveals the blueprint that's changing education in Alabama. As School Improvement Director for Tuscaloosa City Schools, she's pioneered a system of continuous improvement that's yielded remarkable results—turning around schools that had languished on intervention lists for years.

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:06):
Welcome to Spotlight for Success by American Book
Company.
I am Devin Pintosa, your host.
We are here at the AlabamaFederal Education Programs
Conference in wonderfulMontgomery Alabama.
We are here with Dr Tanya Cruz.
She is the School ImprovementDirector at Tuscaloosa City

(00:26):
Schools.
Welcome, tanya.

Speaker 2 (00:29):
Thank you.
Thank you for having me.

Speaker 1 (00:31):
All right, tanya, tell us a bit about your work in
Tuscaloosa City.

Speaker 2 (00:36):
Oh, wow.
So my work is centered aroundcontinuous improvement at every
level, from the school level tothe district level.
Just making sure thatcontinuous improvement processes
are in place, making sure thatschools have very solid,
continuous, or what we callschool improvement plans, and
making sure that those plans arenot only developed based on a

(01:00):
needs assessment but alsomonitored throughout the year to
make sure that if anyadjustments need to be made,
they're made for the bettermentof our students.

Speaker 1 (01:11):
That is wonderful.
Tanya, yeah, Can you tell us abit about your educational
journey?
I understand where you were ateacher originally.
Is that right?

Speaker 2 (01:19):
Yes, yes, yes, I taught for 10 years in an
elementary setting.
I taught really all gradelevels but subject areas.
Actually, however, my mainfocus was with elementary math.
So I taught math and then,after teaching for 10 years, I
was recruited by the StateDepartment to serve in the area

(01:41):
of classroom improvement, and soI did that for three
consecutive years and out ofthose years again was centered
around continuous improvementand just supporting schools with
, again, those continuousimprovement processes, and from
there I served as also aturnaround specialist in one of
the middle schools that wastraditionally known as a

(02:04):
low-performing school Title Ischool and really worked and
served and supported theprincipal and that entire
faculty with continuousimprovement efforts, and in one
year they experienced aturnaround after being on one of
the school list identificationlist for several years, okay,
and then from there I waspromoted to a principal of a

(02:26):
middle school Again, sometraditionally low performance in
that school, along with, again,a Title I school.
And so, with that being said,put some real intervention
efforts in place.
And again, that schoolexperienced some turnaround in
three years.
It actually took three years.
So then, from there, I wasre-promoted to the district

(02:48):
level, and that schoolexperienced some turnaround in
three years.
It actually took three years.
So then, from there, I wasre-promoted to the district
level and my current role isschool improvement and
turnaround administrator.
So now at the district level, Isupport all 21 schools with
continuous improvement efforts.

Speaker 1 (03:01):
That is wonderful.
Yes, you are the schoolturnaround superhero for your
area.

Speaker 2 (03:05):
Well, you know what it takes a team effort, it's a
collaborative effort it's taking.
You know, when we say teamworkmakes the dream work, that is a
true detection of what reallyneeds to happen at every level,
with the students, with theteachers, and then at the
district level.
So it's a team, collaborativeeffort.

Speaker 1 (03:28):
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(03:53):
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Hope to hear from you soon.
Bye-bye, that is so inspiring.

Speaker 2 (04:02):
Yes, do you have anything you would like to share
with the Alabama FederalPrograms Conference attendees
here Well, I would just like toshare everything that we heard
today in this morning's sectionReally talked about putting
really some true continuousimprovement efforts in place,

(04:27):
efforts in place and thoseefforts always.
It's going to start with makingsure you use your results, your
data, to make sure that youdrive everything that you do.
And not only that making surethat you have some true critical
initiatives, some trueactivities.
Make sure you have a budget inplace to support whatever
resources are needed and makesure that you have that true
monitoring component that is inplace to make sure you're

(04:50):
getting the results that youwant for your students.

Speaker 1 (04:55):
That is wonderful, dr Cruz.
I appreciate this so much.
Again, dr Tanya Cruz, withTuscaloosa City Schools, Thank
you for joining us today.

Speaker 2 (05:03):
Thank you so much for having me.