Is Your Partnership Effective?: An Analysis of the Cleveland Metropolitan School District Math and Science Partnership
Is the partnership working effectively?
From 2003 to 2007 the partnership has strengthened overall. 87.5% of Cleveland partners in 2007 indicated that a partnership based on a genuine collaboration has been established. Moreover, the highest level of agreement among the partners in 2007 is the need for the partnership. There has been notable progress in Cleveland MSP partners' opinions regarding making the partnership work, planning collaborative action, minimizing the barriers of the partnership, and reflecting on and continuing the partnership.
What aspects of the partnership are more effective?
The Cleveland MSP partners agree strongly with the following:
There is a need for the partnership in terms of common interest and complementary capacity.
There is a clear goal for the partnership.
There is a shared understanding of, and commitment to the goal among all partners.
The perceived benefits of the partnership outweigh the perceived costs.
The partnership brings added prestige to the partners individually as well as collectively.
There has been enough variety among members to have a comprehensive understanding of the issues being addressed within the partnership.
Each member of the MSP supports the partnership.
The partners have the skills for collaborative action.
There has been an investment of time, personnel, materials, or facilities
The actions of the partners are adding value for the community, teachers, faculty, partners and institutions involved in the partnership.
There is a core group of skilled and committed partners that has continued over the life of the partnership.
There is a clear need for and commitment to continuing the partnership.
The level of agreement among Cleveland MSP partners has increased substantially from 2003 to 2007 for the following:
The partners are willing to share their ideas, resources, influence, and power to fulfill the goal of the partnership.
The partners share common ideologies, interests, and approaches.
The roles, responsibilities and expectations of the partners are clearly defined and understood.
The administrative, communication, and decision-making structure of the partnership is as simple as possible.
That all partners are involved in planning and setting priorities for collaborative action.
The lines of communication, roles, and expectations of partners are clear
There is a participatory decision-making system that is accountable, responsive, and inclusive.
Differences in institutional priorities, goals, and tasks have been addressed.
The partnership can demonstrate or document the outcomes of its collective work.
The level of agreement among Cleveland MSP partners increased notably from 2003 to 2007 for the following:
Partners view their partnership as partially interdependent.
There are good relations and open communication between the partners.
The partners have the task of communicating and promoting the coalition in their own institutions.
There are informal ways of sharing information and resolving disputes.
What aspects of the partnership are ineffective?
Overall, the partnership is getting stronger and moving in the right direction, however; since 2003 there has been a consistent lack of agreement between the partners in the following areas:
There are strategies to enhance the skills of the partnership through increasing professional development.
Partners have roles that cross the traditional boundaries that exist between institutions in the partnership.
There are processes that are common across institutions such as data collection, and reporting mechanisms that have been standardized.
That the collaborative action by partners and the reciprocity between institutions are rewarded.
There are regular opportunities for informal and voluntary contact between partners from the different institutions.
There are formal structures for sharing information and resolving disputes.
There are strategies to ensure that alternative views are expressed within the partnership.
There are processes for recognizing and celebrating collective achievements and/or individual outcomes.
There are resources available from either internal or external sources to continue the partnership.
There is a way of reviewing the range of partners, bringing in new members, and removing some.
