Clarinda Community Schools, located in southwest Iowa, is a rural public school system
with approximately 1,200 students in PreK through 12th grade.
THE CHALLENGE
Clarinda Community Schools wanted to improve their literacy outcomes by 1) giving families
the tools they need, 2) increasing access to summer learning, and 3) leveraging community
programs and resources.
THE SOLUTION
Through a custom Innovation Works® recipe, Clarinda Community Schools was able to
leverage the collective knowledge and experience of more than 50 stakeholders to identify
key strategies for impacting reading scores. Participants in the process included a diverse
mix of students, teachers, staff members, school board members, and leaders from
community organizations.
Through a game-based process, teams focused on improving reading outcomes before
third grade, a milestone when young readers pivot from learning to read, to reading to
learn. They developed, refined, and pitched ideas. From this, three key strategies were
identified and stakeholders worked together to create and pitch implementation plans.
THE RESULTS
“Innovation Works® helped us identify strategies we can begin to implement right away. It
introduced our students to the innovation process and showed faculty how to apply game
theory and the innovation process to make the classroom experience more engaging.”
- Chris Bergman, Superintendent
