March 17, 2025

As we continue to navigate uncertainty and architected crises, let’s lead forward unafraid - unified by a belief that our lives are inextricably linked.

Executive Orders have been issued at a dizzying pace, each one dismantling critical civil rights and threatening vital services for young people. These rapid changes are reshaping a federal landscape that has historically played a key role safeguarding civil rights and creating access to opportunities for students and educators.

The Department of Education has served as a steward of educational equity across administrations and political divides. The DOE has worked to protect students with disabilities, fight discrimination, support teacher development, and provide pathways to higher education. The DOE’s data collection and analysis has helped us understand the progress of our nation’s schools, and name where we still have work to do to meet the needs of all students.

Public education remains the cornerstone of our democracy—a place where young people develop not just academic knowledge, but the sense of belonging, connection, and agency essential for healthy development and civic participation. As we witness these federal changes unfolding, we need to face their widespread impacts—particularly on students and communities who have been least well resourced and least well served. Now more than ever, we need thoughtful, brave and creative leadership in our schools, classrooms, communities, and school boards.

Over the past year, the National Equity Project partnered with Education Resource Strategies to listen to the needs of education leaders facing rapid changes driven by social, environmental, economic, political, and technological shifts. While we couldn’t have predicted the full extent of the challenges we face today, we have developed a new approach to planning that responds to the complexity and uncertainty education leaders face in ways that bridge the relational and political divides present in communities across the country.

Whether you are planning for the next five years or the next five days, Adaptive Strategic Planning for Complex Times: A Guide for Education Leaders provides a framework, resources, and tools for leaders to make decisions in ways that build community, increase belonging, and foster innovation no matter what challenges they face.

Here’s one thing that won’t change – the National Equity Project won’t stop providing support, resources, and practical tools to leaders committed to building an education system that prepares every young person to thrive and contribute to our dynamic, diverse, and interconnected world.

We invite your support for our critical work to continue.

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