Building Strong Core Instruction Systems: A turnaround school principal’s journey
What does it take to transform a struggling school into a thriving learning community? In this session, participants will hear about the real‑world journey of a turnaround school principal who rebuilt core instructional systems from the ground up. Attendees will explore how coherent instructional expectations, aligned professional learning, data‑driven decision‑making, and collaborative teacher teams became the foundation for stronger student outcomes. The session will unpack both the successes and the challenges—what worked, what had to be redesigned, and what ultimately made the biggest difference for teachers and students.
Christiana Robbins
Christiana Robbins brings 21 years of experience in education, including roles as a curriculum specialist, assistant principal, and now principal for 7 years. With two master’s degrees in Elementary Education and Educational Leadership, she focuses on instructional excellence, collaborative leadership, and creating systems that support both teachers and students.
Dr. Jennifer Rinck
Dr. Jennifer Rinck serves as a School Leadership Coach/Consultant with Instructional Empowerment. She works with district and school leaders to advance Instructional Empowerment’s mission to end generational poverty and achievement gaps for ALL students.
Dr. Rinck has worked over 24 years, in the education profession as a teacher, instructional coach, school and systems improvement specialist, school administrator, and district administrator in both public and private K12 systems. In conjunction with her PK12 experiences, she served as an administrator and current adjunct professor in the College of Education at the University of South Florida. Through her PK20 experiences, she focuses on strengths-based leadership development, policy/initiative implementation, systems learning, effective teaming and partnerships, and professional development.
In addition, Dr. Rinck has an active research agenda with several publications and referred conference presentations. She has book chapters published in Educational Leadership where we’ve been and where we are going: Dimensions of research, policy, and practice (2016), Clinically Based Teacher Education in Action (2021), and Advancing School-University Partnerships and Professional Development Schools Through National Research (2024). She has presented at American Evaluation Association, University Council of Educational Administration, International Council of Professors of Educational Leadership, and American Education Research Association conferences.
Session Details
District Name: Alachua
M.K. Rawlings Elementary School
Elementary (K–5)
Audience: Coaches; School Leaders; District Leaders
Difficulty Level: Intermediate