Reimagining what school can be.
Across California, communities are redesigning middle and high schools so every student is known, learning connects to the world, and young people leave ready to thrive.
Who we are
A network of networks
that learns together, so what works in a few places reaches many and no school starts from scratch.
Schools and districts across California are redesigning their middle and high schools together. The network finds what’s working, supports schools as they change, documents what they learn, and helps it spread through demonstration sites, shared learning, research, and policy shaped by practice.
- 14networks
- ~70districts
- 100+school sites
- 8cross-network working groups
The challenge
Why secondary school redesign?
Middle and high school experiences should help each young person feel known, engage deeply in learning, and see meaningful possibilities ahead.
The student experience in California today
Only51
in every 100 students feel a sense of connectedness at school
Only54
in every 100 students feel an adult at school cares about them
52
in every 100 students feel school is really boring*
Only22
in every 100 students are asked to participate in meaningful ways:
- Engaging in interesting activities
- Doing things that make a difference
- Having a say in how things work
- Determining class and school rules
California Healthy Kids Survey: averages from 2021–23; *2024–25
Why now
As the world changes, redesign asks what students need to thrive and what schools need to look like to develop those capacities on purpose.
Research on adolescent development shows the environments we design for young people shape not just what they learn, but how they grow.
The idea
What is redesign?
Secondary school redesign is an ongoing, research-informed process of reimagining outcomes and evolving learning experiences in middle and high schools, with adolescents at the center and a shared vision co-designed with students, educators, families, and communities. It moves beyond isolated programs or practices to make coordinated changes in how schools and districts organize time, relationships, and structures, creating coherent, lasting change that builds on community strengths and continually adapts to changing needs, opportunities, and conditions.
Proof points
Stories from the field
Pacific High School’s Biomedical Pathway: What Redesign Makes Possible
Middle School by Design
Four Graduates on What Redesign Made Possible
Alongside these stories, we’re building a growing collection of resources our networks and partners have already created and shared through Common Ground, the network’s newsletter. Explore playbooks, research, case studies, and tools you can use and adapt.
Tools & resourcesYour part
School redesign doesn’t work without you.
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Latest issue: Issue 7: A Shared Definition, Alive (opens in a new tab)