Publications
Academic Papers
Practitioner Facing Publications
Presentations by Year
Presentations by Content
Academic Papers
2026
Duff, M., Peurach, D. J., Russell, J. L., Sherer, J. Z., Jones, E. S., & Matthis, C. S. (2026). Improvement Network Health and Development Study: The evolution of the Hub Leadership Survey (Technical report). University of Michigan. https://doi.org/10.7302/dspace/30381
Jones, E. S., Peurach, D. J., Russell, J. L., Duff, M., Sherer, J. Z., & Matthis, C. S. (2026). Improvement Network Health and Development Study: Constructing the practice profiles and professional profiles of hub leadership (Technical report). University of Michigan. https://doi.org/10.7302/dspace/30383
2025
The Peabody Journal of Education: Special Issue
Educational Improvement Networks: Exploring the Development of Scientific-Professional Learning Communities
Russell, J. L., Peurach, D. J., & Bryk, A. S. (2025). Introduction to Themed Issue: Educational Improvement Networks: Exploring the Development of Scientific-Professional Learning Communities. Peabody Journal of Education, 100(1), 1–6. https://doi.org/10.1080/0161956X.2025.2444824 Russell, J. L., Bryk, A. S., Peurach, D. J., Sherer, J. Z., Duff, M., Sherer, D., & Matthis, C. (2025). Catalyzing Scientific-Professional Learning Communities: A Framework for Conceptualizing the Health and Development of Educational Improvement Networks*. Peabody Journal of Education, 100(1), 7–27. https://doi.org/10.1080/0161956X.2025.2444839 Bryk, A. S., Li, A. Y. L., Luppescu, S., & Bui, M. A. (2025). Examining the Validity of Practical Measures of Improvement Network Health and Development. Peabody Journal of Education, 100(1), 28–47. https://doi.org/10.1080/0161956X.2025.2444840 Sherer, D., Bryk, A. S., Yee-Lam Li, A., Sherer, J. Z., Russell, J. L., & Bui, M. A. (2025). The Design of an Information System to Support Network Development. Peabody Journal of Education, 100(1), 48–63. https://doi.org/10.1080/0161956X.2025.2444842 Russell, J. L., Bryk, A. S., & Sherer, J. Z. (2025). Bringing Scientific-Professional Learning Communities into Practice: Exploring Variation in Educational Improvement Network Health and Development. Peabody Journal of Education, 100(1), 64–81. https://doi.org/10.1080/0161956X.2025.2444843 Perlman, H., Bryk, A. S., & Russell, J. L. (2025). Measuring Educators’ Perceived Benefits of Participation in Educational Improvement Networks. Peabody Journal of Education, 100(1), 82–99. https://doi.org/10.1080/0161956X.2025.2444844 Duff, M., Sherer, J. Z., Premo, A., & Perlman, H. (2025). Hub Leaders’ Perspectives on Equity in Networked Improvement. Peabody Journal of Education, 100(1), 100–116. https://doi.org/10.1080/0161956X.2025.2444845 Peurach, D. J., Jones, E. S., Duff, M., Sherer, J. Z., & Matthis, C. (2025). The Practice and Contexts of Hub and District Leadership: New Directions in Research on Educational Improvement Networks. Peabody Journal of Education, 100(1), 117–132. https://doi.org/10.1080/0161956X.2025.2444846
2020
The Work and Complications of Hub Leadership in Educational Improvement Networks
Peurach, D. J., Russell, J. L., Sherer, J. Z., McMahon, K., & Parkerson, E. (2020). The work and complications of hub leadership in educational improvement networks. Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching. PDF.
Practitioner Facing Publications
2026
How State Leaders Can Support Local Innovation and Improvement
Many states are facing renewed calls to take a more active role in school improvement—often without the capacity to do it alone. In the latest issue of The Standard, researchers Jennifer Lin Russell, Donald Peurach, and Jennifer Zoltners Sherer explore how local networks for educational improvement can offer states a productive path forward, drawing on their work evaluating these networks’ impact and how states might make them more common and more effective.
Russell, J. L., Peurach, D. J., & Sherer, J. Z. (2026). How state leaders can support local innovation and improvement. The State Education Standard, 26(3). https://www.nasbe.org/how-state-leaders-can-support-local-innovation-and-improvement/
2025
Improvement Networks in Education: Practical Work Series
Russell, J. L., Bryk, A. S., & Sherer, J. Z. (2025). Understanding variation in improvement networks (Improvement Networks in Education: Practical Work Series). The Network Health Project. https://improvementnetworks.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/UnderstandingVariationinImprovementNetworks_NetworkHealthProject.pdf
Presentations by Year
2026
| Title | Citation |
|---|---|
| Leading for network health: Selecting tools and planning your improvement routines | Sherer, J. Z., Li, A. Y., Purohit, K., & West, R. (2026, March). Leading for network health: Selecting tools and planning your improvement routines [Paper presentation]. National Summit on Improvement in Education, San Diego, CA, United States. Presentation. Handout. |
| On or off track? Understanding how your leadership practice is helping your network reach its aim | Sherer, J. Z., McMahon, K., & Li, A. Y. (2026, March). On or off track? Understanding how your leadership practice is helping your network reach its aim [Paper presentation]. National Summit on Improvement in Education, San Diego, CA, United States. Presentation. Handout. |
| When time gets in the way: Understanding time-related challenges in improvement networks | Li, A. Y., Sherer, J. Z., & Bryk, A. S. (2026). When time gets in the way: Understanding time-related challenges in improvement networks [Paper presentation]. American Educational Research Association Meeting, Los Angeles, CA, United States. Handout forthcoming. |
| Making improvement continuous: How network hub leaders plan for the sustained impact of educational improvement networks | Duff, M., Russell, J. L., Sherer, J. Z., & Matthis, C. (2026). Making improvement continuous: How network hub leaders plan for the sustained impact of educational improvement networks [Poster presentation]. American Educational Research Association Meeting, Los Angeles, CA, United States. |
| Contextualizing the evaluations of the NSI initiative: Perspectives on hub leadership in educational improvement networks | Peurach, D., Duff, M., Sherer, J. Z., & Matthis, C. (2026). Contextualizing the evaluations of the NSI initiative: Perspectives on hub leadership in educational improvement networks [Paper presentation]. American Educational Research Association Meeting, Los Angeles, CA, United States. Presentation. |
2025
| Title | Citation |
|---|---|
| Planning for sustained impact: How can we ensure our improvement work sticks? | Russell, J. L., & Sherer, J. Z. (2025, November). Planning for sustained impact: How can we ensure our improvement work sticks? [Paper presentation]. Summit, Nashville, TN, United States. Presentation. Guide. |
| Key considerations for building a productive improvement network: What do leaders need to know? | Sherer, J. Z., Li, A., & McMahon, K. (2025, November). Key considerations for building a productive improvement network: What do leaders need to know? [Paper presentation]. Summit, Nashville, TN, United States. Presentation. Six Domains Guide. Rubric. |
| Improvement network development: Exploring the promise of collaboration among schools to support educational improvement | Russell, J. L., Peurach, D., Bryk, A., Duff, M., Li, A., Perlman, H., Premo, A., Sherer, J. Z., & Matthis, C. (2025). Improvement network development: Exploring the promise of collaboration among schools to support educational improvement [Paper presentation]. American Educational Research Association Meeting, Denver, CO, United States. Presentation. |
| Designing for high engagement: Balancing structure and agency in improvement networks | Sherer, J. Z., Li, A., & Russell, J. L. (2025, March). Designing for high engagement: Balancing structure and agency in improvement networks [Paper presentation]. The Carnegie Foundation Summit on Improvement in Education, San Diego, CA, United States. Presentation. Methods Sheet. |
| Supporting network leaders: Unpacking the work and challenges of hub leadership | Sherer, J. Z., Peurach, D., & McMahon, K. (2025, March). Supporting network leaders: Unpacking the work and challenges of hub leadership [Paper presentation]. The Carnegie Foundation Summit on Improvement in Education, San Diego, CA, United States. Presentation. 1Pager. |
| The central role of hub leaders in the development and sustained impact of NSI | Peurach, D., Jones, E., Duff, M., Sherer, J. Z., & Matthis, C. (2025, January). The central role of hub leaders in the development and sustained impact of NSI [Webinar]. NSI Advisory Board. Powerpoint. |
2024
| Title | Citation |
|---|---|
| Equity in networked improvement: For whom and under what conditions? | Duff, M., Sherer, J. Z., & Li, A. (2024, March). Equity in networked improvement: For whom and under what conditions? [Paper presentation]. The Carnegie Foundation Summit on Improvement in Education, San Diego, CA, United States. Presentation. |
| Improvement network development: Lessons from the field | Russell, J. L., Sherer, J. Z., Bryk, A., & Duff, M. (2024, March). Improvement network development: Lessons from the field [Paper presentation]. The Carnegie Foundation Summit on Improvement in Education, San Diego, CA, United States. Presentation. |
| Putting networks in context: How NSI manage complex environments | Duff, M., Russell, J. L., & Sherer, J. Z. (2024, March). Putting networks in context: How NSI manage complex environments [Paper presentation]. The Carnegie Foundation Summit on Improvement in Education, San Diego, CA, United States. Presentation. |
| Equity in networked improvement: For whom and under what conditions? | Duff, M., Sherer, J. Z., Russell, J. L., Premo, A. E., Li, A. Y., & Perlman, H. (2024). Equity in networked improvement: For whom and under what conditions? [Paper presentation]. American Educational Research Association Meeting, Philadelphia, PA, United States. Presentation. |
| Network health | Russell, J. L., & Sherer, J. Z. (2024, June). Network health [Presentation]. Community of Practice. Presentation. |
2023
| Title | Citation |
|---|---|
| Organizing for improvement | Russell, J. L., & Sherer, J. Z. (2023). Organizing for improvement [Paper presentation]. American Educational Research Association Meeting, Chicago, IL, United States. |
| Developing, managing, and sustaining school improvement networks: Inside the black box of hub leadership | Peurach, D. J., Russell, J. L., Sherer, J. Z., Jones, E., Duff, M., Matthis, C. S., & McMahon, K. (2023). Developing, managing, and sustaining school improvement networks: Inside the black box of hub leadership [Paper presentation]. American Educational Research Association Meeting, Chicago, IL, United States. |
| Putting networks in context: How school improvement networks manage complex environments | Duff, M., Perlman, H., Russell, J. L., Sherer, J. Z., Matthis, C. S., & Bryk, A. S. (2023, April). Putting networks in context: How school improvement networks manage complex environments [Paper presentation]. American Educational Research Association Meeting, Chicago, IL, United States. Presentation. |
| A descriptive examination of the manifestation of the improvement network concept in the NSI Initiative | Russell, J. L., Peurach, D. J., Bryk, A., Sherer, J. Z., Duff, M., & Premo, A. (2023). A descriptive examination of the manifestation of the improvement network concept in the NSI Initiative [Paper presentation]. American Educational Research Association Meeting, Chicago, IL, United States. |
2022
| Title | Citation |
|---|---|
| The work and complications of hub leadership in educational improvement networks | Peurach, D., Russell, J. L., Sherer, J. Z., McMahon, K., & Parkerson, E. (2022). The work and complications of hub leadership in educational improvement networks. In Creating systemic change for improvement and transformation: Affordances and limitations of five efforts to improve instruction at scale [Symposium]. American Educational Research Association Meeting, San Diego, CA, United States. |
2021
| Title | Citation |
|---|---|
| Improving the core: Features, challenges, and opportunities of instructionally-focused improvement networks | Russell, J. L., Sherer, J. Z., Petrosky, A., Newman, C., Smith, T., Walters, K., & Ashoka, E. H. (2021, April). Improving the core: Features, challenges, and opportunities of instructionally-focused improvement networks [Paper presentation]. The Carnegie Foundation Summit on Improvement in Education. Virtual. |
2020
| Title | Citation |
|---|---|
| Improving the core: Features and challenges of instructionally-focused networked improvement communities | Russell, J. L., Sherer, J. Z., Ashoka, E. H., & Apodaca, R. (2020, April). Improving the core: Features and challenges of instructionally-focused networked improvement communities [Paper presentation]. The Carnegie Foundation Summit on Improvement in Education. Virtual. |
Presentations by Content
Hub and network leadership
| Title | Citation |
|---|---|
| Leading for network health: Selecting tools and planning your improvement routines | Sherer, J. Z., Li, A. Y., Purohit, K., & West, R. (2026, March). Leading for network health: Selecting tools and planning your improvement routines [Paper presentation]. National Summit on Improvement in Education, San Diego, CA, United States. Presentation. Handout. |
| On or off track? Understanding how your leadership practice is helping your network reach its aim | Sherer, J. Z., McMahon, K., & Li, A. Y. (2026, March). On or off track? Understanding how your leadership practice is helping your network reach its aim [Paper presentation]. National Summit on Improvement in Education, San Diego, CA, United States. Presentation. Handout. |
| Contextualizing the evaluations of the NSI initiative: Perspectives on hub leadership in educational improvement networks | Peurach, D., Duff, M., Sherer, J. Z., & Matthis, C. (2026). Contextualizing the evaluations of the NSI initiative: Perspectives on hub leadership in educational improvement networks [Paper presentation]. American Educational Research Association Meeting, Los Angeles, CA, United States. Presentation. |
| Key considerations for building a productive improvement network: What do leaders need to know? | Sherer, J. Z., Li, A., & McMahon, K. (2025, November). Key considerations for building a productive improvement network: What do leaders need to know? [Paper presentation]. Summit, Nashville, TN, United States. Presentation. Six Domains Guide. Rubric. |
| Supporting network leaders: Unpacking the work and challenges of hub leadership | Sherer, J. Z., Peurach, D., & McMahon, K. (2025, March). Supporting network leaders: Unpacking the work and challenges of hub leadership [Paper presentation]. The Carnegie Foundation Summit on Improvement in Education, San Diego, CA, United States. Presentation. 1Pager. |
| The central role of hub leaders in the development and sustained impact of NSI | Peurach, D., Jones, E., Duff, M., Sherer, J. Z., & Matthis, C. (2025, January). The central role of hub leaders in the development and sustained impact of NSI [Webinar]. NSI Advisory Board. Powerpoint. |
| Developing, managing, and sustaining school improvement networks: Inside the black box of hub leadership | Peurach, D. J., Russell, J. L., Sherer, J. Z., Jones, E., Duff, M., Matthis, C. S., & McMahon, K. (2023). Developing, managing, and sustaining school improvement networks: Inside the black box of hub leadership [Paper presentation]. American Educational Research Association Meeting, Chicago, IL, United States. |
| The work and complications of hub leadership in educational improvement networks | Peurach, D., Russell, J. L., Sherer, J. Z., McMahon, K., & Parkerson, E. (2022). The work and complications of hub leadership in educational improvement networks. In Creating systemic change for improvement and transformation: Affordances and limitations of five efforts to improve instruction at scale [Symposium]. American Educational Research Association Meeting, San Diego, CA, United States. |
Network development and design
| Title | Citation |
|---|---|
| Improvement network development: Exploring the promise of collaboration among schools to support educational improvement | Russell, J. L., Peurach, D., Bryk, A., Duff, M., Li, A., Perlman, H., Premo, A., Sherer, J. Z., & Matthis, C. (2025). Improvement network development: Exploring the promise of collaboration among schools to support educational improvement [Paper presentation]. American Educational Research Association Meeting, Denver, CO, United States. Presentation. |
| Designing for high engagement: Balancing structure and agency in improvement networks | Sherer, J. Z., Li, A., & Russell, J. L. (2025, March). Designing for high engagement: Balancing structure and agency in improvement networks [Paper presentation]. The Carnegie Foundation Summit on Improvement in Education, San Diego, CA, United States. Presentation. Methods Sheet. |
| Improvement network development: Lessons from the field | Russell, J. L., Sherer, J. Z., Bryk, A., & Duff, M. (2024, March). Improvement network development: Lessons from the field [Paper presentation]. The Carnegie Foundation Summit on Improvement in Education, San Diego, CA, United States. Presentation. |
| Network health | Russell, J. L., & Sherer, J. Z. (2024, June). Network health [Presentation]. Community of Practice. Presentation. |
| Organizing for improvement | Russell, J. L., & Sherer, J. Z. (2023). Organizing for improvement [Paper presentation]. American Educational Research Association Meeting, Chicago, IL, United States. |
| A descriptive examination of the manifestation of the improvement network concept in the NSI Initiative | Russell, J. L., Peurach, D. J., Bryk, A., Sherer, J. Z., Duff, M., & Premo, A. (2023). A descriptive examination of the manifestation of the improvement network concept in the NSI Initiative [Paper presentation]. American Educational Research Association Meeting, Chicago, IL, United States. |
Sustained and continuous impact
| Title | Citation |
|---|---|
| When time gets in the way: Understanding time-related challenges in improvement networks | Li, A. Y., Sherer, J. Z., & Bryk, A. S. (2026). When time gets in the way: Understanding time-related challenges in improvement networks [Paper presentation]. American Educational Research Association Meeting, Los Angeles, CA, United States. Handout forthcoming. |
| Making improvement continuous: How network hub leaders plan for the sustained impact of educational improvement networks | Duff, M., Russell, J. L., Sherer, J. Z., & Matthis, C. (2026). Making improvement continuous: How network hub leaders plan for the sustained impact of educational improvement networks [Poster presentation]. American Educational Research Association Meeting, Los Angeles, CA, United States. |
| Planning for sustained impact: How can we ensure our improvement work sticks? | Russell, J. L., & Sherer, J. Z. (2025, November). Planning for sustained impact: How can we ensure our improvement work sticks? [Paper presentation]. Summit, Nashville, TN, United States. Presentation. Guide. |
Equity in networked improvement
| Title | Citation |
|---|---|
| Equity in networked improvement: For whom and under what conditions? | Duff, M., Sherer, J. Z., & Li, A. (2024, March). Equity in networked improvement: For whom and under what conditions? [Paper presentation]. The Carnegie Foundation Summit on Improvement in Education, San Diego, CA, United States. Presentation. |
| Equity in networked improvement: For whom and under what conditions? | Duff, M., Sherer, J. Z., Russell, J. L., Premo, A. E., Li, A. Y., & Perlman, H. (2024). Equity in networked improvement: For whom and under what conditions? [Paper presentation]. American Educational Research Association Meeting, Philadelphia, PA, United States. Presentation. |
Context and complex environments
| Title | Citation |
|---|---|
| Putting networks in context: How NSI manage complex environments | Duff, M., Russell, J. L., & Sherer, J. Z. (2024, March). Putting networks in context: How NSI manage complex environments [Paper presentation]. The Carnegie Foundation Summit on Improvement in Education, San Diego, CA, United States. Presentation. |
| Putting networks in context: How school improvement networks manage complex environments | Duff, M., Perlman, H., Russell, J. L., Sherer, J. Z., Matthis, C. S., & Bryk, A. S. (2023, April). Putting networks in context: How school improvement networks manage complex environments [Paper presentation]. American Educational Research Association Meeting, Chicago, IL, United States. Presentation. |
Instructional focus and early NIC work
| Title | Citation |
|---|---|
| Improving the core: Features, challenges, and opportunities of instructionally-focused improvement networks | Russell, J. L., Sherer, J. Z., Petrosky, A., Newman, C., Smith, T., Walters, K., & Ashoka, E. H. (2021, April). Improving the core: Features, challenges, and opportunities of instructionally-focused improvement networks [Paper presentation]. The Carnegie Foundation Summit on Improvement in Education. Virtual. |
| Improving the core: Features and challenges of instructionally-focused networked improvement communities | Russell, J. L., Sherer, J. Z., Ashoka, E. H., & Apodaca, R. (2020, April). Improving the core: Features and challenges of instructionally-focused networked improvement communities [Paper presentation]. The Carnegie Foundation Summit on Improvement in Education. Virtual. |