Omaha Public Schools
Strengthening literacy
Omaha Public Schools (OPS) is partnering with Leading Educators to strengthen instruction in 15 Comprehensive Support and Improvement (CSI) elementary schools so all students are ready for their next step.
About the Partnership
Omaha Public Schools is a vital institution for the youngest residents in the city of Omaha, serving more than 54,000 students. While students bring different strengths, life experiences, and support systems, Omaha sees its public schools as the community’s chief vehicle for working towards equal opportunities for all Omaha children.
To build on strengths and expand opportunities for students to achieve greatly, Omaha Public Schools leaders recognize that the district needs to make key systemic improvements in support systems for excellent teaching.
Challenge
In spring 2023, an academic diagnostic revealed key areas of opportunity:
- OPS students had access to grade-level work only 40% of the time and demonstrated ownership of their learning and meaning-making just 26% of the time in ELA across 20 schools.
- Only 32% of ELA teachers surveyed had a strong belief in students’ ability to perform at grade level. Consequently, the district recognized the need to address rigor and mindsets in instruction.
The district adopted HMH Into Reading during the 2019-2020 school year, but high teacher turnover rates and teacher shortages have made consistent implementation challenging. Teachers have had limited experience implementing Into Reading in a traditional setting and have also experienced additional adoptions of high-quality instructional materials (HQIM) for other content areas. The training and development for literacy have been limited.
Solution
OPS aims to establish structures for district- and school-level staff to build on their strengths and expand students’ opportunities to achieve greatly in literacy. This includes implementing collaborative planning time and developing school-based instructional facilitators to support peer teachers’ growth.
To build on student strengths and expand opportunities for success, Omaha Public Schools is making key system-wide improvements to ensure every student experiences excellent teaching and strong literacy foundations.
Now in its second year, OPS’s partnership with Leading Educators continues to support Comprehensive Support and Improvement (CSI) elementary schools in strengthening literacy instruction. This year’s focus includes:
- K-2 teachers: Deepening expertise in foundational literacy to strengthen early reading skills.
- 3-5 teachers: Enhancing student tasks and engagement in literacy instruction.
- Content-Focused PLCs: Providing structured time for teachers to collaborate, refine best practices, and apply high-leverage instructional strategies.
- Progress Monitoring: Ensuring strong PLC implementation, effective teaching practices, and positive student outcomes.
Expanding support to secondary CSI schools, OPS, and Leading Educators will provide direct professional learning for teachers so that they can implement the newly adopted HQIM literacy curriculum effectively. This effort ensures that teachers have the resources, training, and support needed to deliver high-quality, impactful literacy instruction.
Along with systems-level support, Leading Educators is facilitating continuous improvement cycles emphasizing methods for teachers to provide and enhance access to grade-level texts and tasks.
This programming incorporates mindset development work focused on maintaining high expectations for students and fostering greater student ownership, specifically with the Into Reading curricular materials. This comprehensive approach will align efforts and collaboration across principals, instructional facilitators, and teachers.
Leading Educators used discovery to understand CSI schools’ contexts, strengths, and areas of need, along with district leadership’s plans. Throughout the year, we’ll conduct data review sessions to monitor and iterate on programming. We’ll also collaborate with district leadership to support coherence, refine the vision, and streamline priorities for improved system conditions.
Leading Educators is creating and leading a year-long curriculum-aligned professional learning series for teachers in priority areas identified with OPS leadership. Additionally, we design and facilitate monthly development sessions aligned with leading curriculum-aligned PLCs and content-aligned coaching for site-based instructional leaders.
Leading Educators staff individually coach 15 CSI elementary school principals around continuous improvement in literacy instruction and implementation of site-based school improvement plans.
Partnership By The Numbers
6,060 Students
supported with more rigorous and joyful lessons in core content areas
285 Teachers
participate in up to 3 monthly 50-minute PLCs to strengthen their instructional practices
15 School Leaders
receive quarterly principal meetings focused on instructional leadership development
15 site-based instructional leaders
receive monthly professional learning sessions on change management and continuous improvement
6,060 Students
supported with more rigorous and joyful lessons in core content areas
285 Teachers
participate in up to 3 monthly 50-minute PLCs to strengthen their instructional practices
15 School Leaders
receive quarterly principal meetings focused on instructional leadership development
15 site-based instructional leaders
receive monthly professional learning sessions on change management and continuous improvement
Meet The Team
Amanda Silva
Chae D'Ann Ray
Ashley Davis
Chae D’Ann Ray
Dr. Kate Ulrich
About Amanda Silva
Over 9 years at Leading Educators, Amanda has served as Senior Director on the Oakland Unified School District project, Director of Content - ELA for Baltimore City Public Schools, Director of Content - District Leadership for Tulsa, and Leadership Coach for LEAP DCPS. She has successfully built capacity across district stakeholders to engage in the change management that enables school districts to design and sustain systems of professional learning that equip educators to translate research-based practices into meaningful classroom impact.
Amanda holds a B.A. in Economics from New York University and an M.A. in Teaching from American University. She holds a deep belief in the power of great teaching to unlock opportunity for all students. In her free time, Amanda enjoys watching the WNBA, crafting, and researching random topics.
Amanda Silva in the news
About Chae D'Ann Ray
Prior to joining Leading Educators, Chae served as Director of ELA Curriculum and Achievement at KIPP Texas Public Schools, where she led the development of K–12 ELA curriculum and professional learning. Her leadership resulted in an 11-percentage point gain in literacy achievement across grades 3-10 on state assessments between 2021 and 2022. She also served as an instructional coach, district curriculum writer, and founding assistant principal, where the school earned all seven state distinctions in its third year.
A National Board Certified Teacher and 2019 Kinder Excellence in Teaching Award recipient, Chae frequently presents at national conferences, including the National Council of Teachers of English, the National Literacy Institute, the Texas Association for Literacy Education, and the Texas National Board Coalition for Teaching, where she serves on the Board of Directors.
She holds a B.A. in English and an M.Ed. in Instructional Leadership and is currently pursuing her Ed.D. in Curriculum and Instruction with a concentration in literacy.
About Ashley Davis
Across these roles, Ashley’s work has contributed to measurable improvements in instructional practice and learning. From 2023-2025, her support helped Instructional leaders in Omaha Public Schools increase their confidence to guide teacher learning from 38% to 83%. In Chicago, 75% of her partner schools adopted a new high-quality curriculum, while the remaining deepened implementation of their existing materials. Her consistent focus on building teacher capacity continues to drive sustainable change in classrooms and school systems.
Ashley holds a Master of Arts in Literacy Studies from Western Michigan University and a Bachelor of Arts in Elementary Education from Western Illinois University.
About Chae D’Ann Ray
Before joining Leading Educators, Chae served as a teacher, instructional coach, and Assistant Principal in Houston and Austin, TX. Chae is a National Board Certified Teacher and a 2019 Kinder Excellence in Teaching Award winner. Most recently she served as a Director of ELA Curriculum and Achievement, serving teachers and leaders in improving literacy outcomes for K-12 students at a high-performing charter network.
Chae holds an M.Ed. in Instructional Leadership from Sam Houston State University and a B.A. in English from University of Houston. Chae lives outside of Houston, TX with her husband and daughter. She loves making memories with her family, trying new restaurants, and traveling.
About Dr. Kate Ulrich
Before joining Leading Educators, Kate served for 16 years as a classroom teacher, instructional coach, curriculum designer, and in various school leadership roles in the NYC and Atlanta communities. Recently, as a Director of Curriculum and Instruction and Assistant Principal at a school in south Atlanta, she enjoyed the opportunity to combine her passions for coaching and curriculum development in order to connect, empathize, and build relationships with teachers, school leaders, and external stakeholders.
Kate earned her doctorate in Leadership and Learning in Organizations from Vanderbilt University. Her research focused on examining how community-based organizations that utilize multi-stakeholder models can impact local education in rural communities. Kate also holds an MA from Columbia University Teachers College in Bilingual, Bicultural Education and a bachelor’s degree from George Washington University in D.C.
When not at work, Kate is an avid nonfiction reader, she enjoys singing and making music with her friends and siblings, as well as spending time volunteering during local elections, hiking, swimming, going to the movies, and enjoying time with her niece, friends, and family.
Learn About Other Partnerships
Omaha Public Schools is just one of a dozen partnerships across the country that are pushing the boundaries of what schools can offer students. Learn more about how we customize our supports to meet the needs and strengths of visionary districts.
