CEO of UpStreamIQ, LLC

A retired Georgia principal, and a former Professional Learning, Assessment, and Curriculum Director, Amy Harrison’s passion lies in continuous learning and service to others. I will always be a teacher at heart! It is my goal to help central office leadership, school administrators, and teachers raise student achievement and growth.  I have successfully implemented systems-thinking strategies in the classroom, as a Principal of a Blue Ribbon school, as a mentor - Principal, and then with the various hats I have worn at the district level.

Throughout her tenure as a district leader in Alabama, Mrs. Harrison focused on building a learning culture within all schools and at the district level. She approached district leadership as she did as a school leader: as a district leader, I came with the same mindset I had as a principal:  it is not just about understanding the data, it’s about the climate and culture.  It is thoughtfully crafting an intensive root cause analysis of where you are and where you are headed as an organization.  I knew from the start that stakeholder buy-in with the mission and vision was essential, as well as consistency across all schools; it doesn’t matter that a leader ‘knows’ the data.  If a leader does not create a climate and culture conducive to success, and with clear communication, it doesn’t matter what initiatives or goals you earnestly set forth.  If you don’t know where people are, where your school or district is in terms of understanding what achievement and growth are, and what teachers need to be successful, then your intent, your hard work, all of it… is moot.  

During her tenure as Elmore County’s Professional Development director and Elementary Curriculum Director, she oversaw and implemented the first MTSS model for the county, which led to a procedural consistency throughout the district of progress monitoring frequency and duration of strategies.  Retentions were also dramatically decreased under Mrs. Harrison’s tenure as MTSS plans and intensive interventions were used as a means to ensure student success.  Mrs. Harrison also engineered a district-wide monitoring system that enabled several schools to get off the ATSI or TSI list. According to Mrs. Harrison, we not only developed sub-group specific plans within our ACIP’s, but we also utilized the MTSS system of supports before it was required to do so; as a result, our leaders, teachers, and students were already prepared.

She also led and coordinated the Leadership Academy for Elmore County School District, rewrote the Attendance plan for elementary schools, implemented and led strategic planning for the district, led professional development in the areas of writing, ELA, and Math strategies, provided professional learning with Hattie’s meta-analysis, and implemented IMPACT meetings for all principals, and led data analyses for all school leaders.

One of her greatest contributions as a district leader was guiding the initiative to hire retired teachers into all first grade classrooms to aid in explicit instruction.  According to Mrs. Harrison, this contributed to ALSDE required- reading plans being slashed by 65%, as well as an increase in overall Lexile levels for first graders entering second grade.  It is part of thinking upstream and planning ahead for continuous improvement.

Under her guidance as Elementary Curriculum Director in 2023, third grade ELA achievement rose from an unweighted score of 62.7% in 2023 to 73.7% on the 2024 ACAP measurement. Fourth grade also rose to new achievement levels with 59.7% ACAP unweighted achievement to 68.2% in 2023. In Spring 2024, third and fourth grade weighted ELA proficiency rates (Levels II, III, and IV) reflected an unprecedented combined total of 88% in 2024.

Mrs. Harrison credits focusing on culture and climate on each campus with this success. Collective efficacy, with regard to quality instruction and success criteria on each elementary campus, provided the necessary shift for success.  This laser-focused shift to provide structured and purposefully scheduled team-collaboration at all schools, with the principal taking part, was a significant game-changer.   She also believes that being visible and accessible for teachers and leaders also played a part in student success and teacher well-being.

Her Superintendent, Mr. Richard Dennis, tasked her with leading the county’s accreditation efforts. During the March 2023 Cognia Accreditation Review, Elmore County School System earned an IEQ score of 360, proudly exceeding the national IEQ average, which is currently between 278.34 and 283.33.   This score placed them in the top 33 school systems in the world, and her school system earned the recognition from Cognia as a System of Distinction. Cognia currently has over 36,000 schools and systems under its umbrella and serves as a primary accreditation source for the U.S. and around the world.

According to Superintendent Richard Dennis, Elmore County students, teachers, and leaders have shown incredible growth under Mrs. Harrison’s guidance. “She did a great job for us through this process,” Dennis said. “We started looking at this six years ago and going through the processes to make necessary changes.” Dr. Andre’ Harrison, VP for Cognia and who personally traveled to Elmore to present the award to the Elmore team, stated that “A lot of systems struggled with the last category (growth in learning)…“but with you getting this award, hey you did something right.”

Systemwide accountability through assessments to measure student learning, curricular alignment and relevant professional learning with our state standards, and training teachers on effective teaching strategies resulted in tremendous achievement gains. Mrs. Harrison also stated that it did not come easy: before making any changes you have to establish relationships first: to be honest, the primary core of a school or district’s success lies in developing strong bonds that promote collective efficacy and mutual respect.

Mrs. Harrison’s professional development modules for leaders stay grounded in the tenets that critical thinking, problem-solving, and the ability to adapt and connect with others are necessary skills that will last a lifetime.

Through UpstreamIQ, Mrs. Harrison utilizes her expertise as a former high school AP English teacher, an elementary school principal, and district leader to serve job-embedded, systems-thinking professional learning. The strategies she employs are backed by evidentiary research, rooted in the Socratic method, and are useful and practical for leaders of schools and districts. The modules I have created are not ‘sit-and-get’; I remember those days and they're not pleasant. My professional learning is relevant to schools and systems and rooted in teamwork and common sense. Each course is designed and differentiated to meet schools where they are. In my decades of experience, there is no ‘one-size-fits-all’ professional development that hits the mark; rather, it is the personalized approach that heralds sustainable, continuous improvement.