At the UW Center for Educational Leadership, we work alongside school leaders who are committed to creating school cultures that elevate students’ belonging and agency. It’s inspiring, but challenging work. Shifting a school’s culture doesn’t happen overnight; it happens step by step.
We help leaders reflect on both the ideal state, or where they hope to be, and the current state, or where they are right now. Research shows that people make incremental improvements when they understand where they are going and where they are currently, as well as a clear path to getting better. The journey from the current state to the ideal state, illustrated in CEL’s staircase, reminds leaders that improvement is not a leap but a climb.
Each step up the staircase represents progress toward the ideal state, and recognizing those steps matters. Oftentimes, leaders wait for the “big win” before pausing to celebrate, but lasting change is built on small wins that allow people to see progress.
John Kotter’s change management framework highlights this power: generating and celebrating short-term wins (Step 6) is essential for sustaining momentum and building a culture of optimism. In one Forbes article, Kotter discussed the impact that celebrating wins has on the community, reflecting that only when efforts are acknowledged “will others see the positive impact a change effort is having on an organization, and only then will they begin to change their own behaviors to help move that effort ahead.” While the ideal state often feels far away or even unattainable, celebrating small wins keeps momentum going. In practice, this might look like:
- Recognizing when a grade-level team makes student voice more central in lesson planning.
- Naming and celebrating when a teacher tries a new feedback strategy that helps students take more ownership of their learning.
- Pausing in a staff meeting to connect today’s success back to the larger vision for student experience.
These celebrations don’t have to be monumental. In fact, the more they are woven into daily school life, the more they reinforce a culture of growth and optimism. They remind everyone—leaders, teachers, and students—that the climb is worth it, and that each step is a small victory on the way to the top.
