Leadership, Process and Results Lessons from South Dakota’s Jacqueline Sly February 21 st , 2017

1. Leadership, Process and Results Lessons from South Dakota’s Jacqueline Sly February 21st, 2017

2. Meet Today’s Presenter • Jacqueline has served the people of South Dakota as a teacher and as a state legislator. During her eight years in the South Dakota House of Representatives she has filled a variety of critical leadership roles. During her last term she was Chairwoman of House Education Committee and was a member of House Health and Human Services Committee. In addition, she was a member of the Legislative Planning Committee, the Public Safety Improvement Act Oversight Council, and the Juvenile Justice Reinvestment Initiative Native American Focus Group Together; her experiences provide valuable lessons that can be applied to your work in a variety of sectors. We look forward to sharing this exciting learning opportunity with all of you.

3. Leadership, Process and Results Lessons from South Dakota's Jacqueline Sly February 22, 2017

4. South Dakota’s Blue Ribbon Taskforce K-12 Education Funding Timeline • February (2015) – Governor announced task force and appointed co-chairs (I was one) • March through June – Public input, listening sessions, collected feedback and synthesized feedback into a report, appointed stakeholder members of the task force • July through August – Task force analyzed quantitative data and compared with qualitative data from the public • September through November – Made recommendations, researched and recommended policy changes for SD K-12 education system, issued final report. • January through March (2016) – Legislative session where 3 major bills passed which significantly impacted K-12 education • Ongoing – implementation and oversight of the new laws Jacqueline Sly - February 2017

5. Establishing a Need through Stakeholder Meetings • Listened to concerns from people directly involved (teachers, administrators, school board members, parents) • Moved to more structured listening within public settings (public, business owners, in addition to those involved in education) Jacqueline Sly - February 2017

6. Stakeholder Meetings continued • Used World Café format – used guiding questions to generate ideas for the problem and moved into solutions in the public meetings. • Responses were documented, grouped into categories and patterns began to evolve. • Used an outside group to gather and record information – provided legitimacy and objectivity (much skepticism from many involved) Jacqueline Sly - February 2017

7. Establishing a Need through the Work of the Task Force • Task force members included a broad spectrum of interests – legislators, Executive branch (including financial), teachers, principals, superintendents, school boards, business owners, parents, Board of Regents • Website – access to all meeting materials, live audio streaming and archived, contact option for ideas and concerns Jacqueline Sly - February 2017

8. Work of Task Force continued • Experts shared data, compare SD data with region. Used people from outside state for data analysis • Began pairing qualitative data from stakeholder meetings with quantitative data – established irrefutable need before ever talking about money • All final recommendations were by consensus. Recommendations worked in concert, not as individual pieces Jacqueline Sly - February 2017

9. Other Process Considerations • Establishing the process is vital to the successful work of the task force • Hours of planning behind the scenes pays off • Relationships before the task force were strained between education stakeholders and the Executive and Legislative branches – great cynicism, spent considerable time building bridges and working to establish trust Jacqueline Sly - February 2017

10. The Dance • Some of us started out being on the dance floor with only a few willing to try dancing. We looked for partners, even if dancing a different dance. It began to come together as the partners saw the need, felt heard, and became part of the discussion of solutions. Eventually others began to join and all began to feel a part of something much bigger than just more money for schools. It became clear that there would have to be compromise on the part of all involved which would result in benefit for all. Jacqueline Sly - February 2017

11. Looking Ahead • Passing legislation is just the beginning. Implementation and oversight is in progress and the impact is to be experienced for years to come • Include oversight and options for adjustments as the journey continues. Jacqueline Sly - February 2017

12. South Dakota Proved Margaret Mead’s Words to be True • Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has. Jacqueline Sly - February 2017

13. Resources • http://blueribbon.sd.gov/ - Blue Ribbon Task Force website • http://www.theworldcafe.com/- World Café website • http://www.theworldcafe.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/Strategic-Questioning.pdf - Strategic Questioning Jacqueline Sly - February 2017

14. Questions? • Contact info: Jacqueline Sly jsly@q.com 605-381-9116 (m) 605-343-4956 (h) Jacqueline Sly - February 2017

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