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Cupertino鈥檚 Flexible Path to System Alignment

For the Cupertino Union School District in California, student-centered learning is more than an aspiration. It is woven into every layer of the system through the 14,600-student district鈥檚 Portrait of a Learner, which defines the skills and dispositions young people need to thrive beyond school.

Superintendent Stacy Yao calls Cupertino鈥檚 use of the portrait 鈥渢he touchstone 鈥� a way for every educator, student and family member to see themselves as part of something bigger.鈥�

This school year, the school district introduced a flexible pathway for teachers, designed to move the work from vision to daily practice. All educators are embedding two key competencies, Inclusive Collaborator and Effective Communicator, into their instruction.

Multiple Avenues

The flexible pathway acknowledges that teachers may enter this work from different places and honors that by offering multiple approaches. Every teacher has selected one of four pathways: project-based learning, content integration, small-scale experiments or a choose-our-own-path option.

Professional development is aligned to each pathway, giving teachers strategies, tools and time to bring the competencies to life in their classrooms. Weekly opportunities are built into lessons for students to practice collaboration and communication, reflect on their progress and gather feedback. Teachers are embracing innovation and experimentation, piloting new learning progressions, using one-page documents for each of their portrait competencies and even testing artificial intelligence tools.

The flex pathway builds on momentum created by last year鈥檚 Accelerator Group, a team of teachers who co-developed resources and piloted strategies. Their work provided models and insights that shaped the districtwide rollout in 2024鈥�25. Now the district is ready for all teachers to engage in the how, marking a shift from planning to full implementation.

Systemwide alignment makes Portrait of a Learner visible far beyond individual classrooms. Principals embed the portrait into leadership plans and coaching cycles. Classified staff 鈥� from bus drivers to custodians 鈥� receive professional development so they can reinforce competencies in everyday interactions with students. Parents and community partners are invited to roundtables to connect with the district鈥檚 vision. From whiteboard magnets in classrooms to board presentations that highlight progress in collaboration and communication, the message is consistent: These skills matter everywhere.

Teachers aren鈥檛 working in isolation, either. Collaboration days provide them time to share strategies and learn from colleagues across schools. Professional networks for principals model reflective practice, while districtwide events give teachers an opportunity to share how their students are demonstrating the portrait competencies in authentic ways.

Coherent Connections

Early evidence is encouraging. Surveys point to an increase in student belonging and wellness, while portfolios and project-based units show students applying their skills in meaningful contexts, even in pre-K classrooms. End-of-year collaboration events highlight teachers鈥� pride in what they tried, refined and accomplished.

鈥淭he biggest shift is coherence,鈥� Yao says. 鈥淓verything now aligns to the portrait. From curriculum to leadership development to community engagement, we鈥檝e created the conditions where every student鈥檚 experience connects back to the skills and confidence they need for the real world.鈥�

鈥� Shannon King