From 2016 to 2017, Public Sector Consultants (PSC) staffed Gov. Rick Snyder’s 21st Century Education Commission. Under the leadership of chair Thomas Haas, president of Grand Valley State University, PSC facilitated an inclusive, multistep visioning and consensus-building process with 25 commissioners representing stakeholders in the education community.
First, the commission reviewed research and data about Michigan’s existing P–20 education systems. They hosted state and national experts to learn more about how high-performing states and nations structure and support their education systems, and they crafted a vision for the future. PSC supported this effort by curating research, identifying speakers, facilitating a dialogue about the future, and building consensus around a shared vision.
Second, commissioners began meeting in three workgroups to identify recommendations. PSC supported the groups by researching topics of interest, drafting recommendations based on commissioners’ input, and facilitating workgroup meetings in collaboration with workgroup chairs. PSC also provided the mechanism to coordinate recommendations across workgroups to ensure alignment between the teams.
Third, workgroups shared their recommendations with the full commission. PSC created a process for reviewing recommendations and, in close collaboration with the chair, facilitated a consensus-building process to debate, amend, and adopt each recommendation.
And finally, PSC was charged with crafting a final report to present the commission’s definition of the problem, review the research conducted, articulate the commission’s vision for the future, and detail each of the 32 recommendations. PSC engaged the workgroup in multiple rounds of feedback and review before finalizing the full report released on March 10, 2017.
It was an honor to serve both the Governor and the commission. Please note that this report is a product of the 21st Century Education Commission, and not Public Sector Consultants. For more details about the commission and its work, visit its official website: mieducationcommission.com.
A copy of the full report is available below.