Michigan’s Statewide System of Support
With the Michigan Department of Education (MDE), Basis evaluates the Statewide System of Support (SSoS), Michigan’s system for identifying and supporting struggling schools. Through a mixed-methods evaluation, Basis examines how continuous improvement strategies are implemented and whether they are associated with better outcomes for disadvantaged students.
Why District Support Matters
Across the country, state education agencies are responsible for supporting schools identified for improvement under the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA). While these systems aim to help schools diagnose challenges, strengthen instruction, and improve outcomes, far less is known about how statewide support structures operate in practice, or which strategies make the greatest difference.
Michigan’s SSoS represents a coordinated statewide effort delivered through various partnerships. By evaluating both implementation and outcomes, Basis understands how support is delivered, identifies the most pressing barriers to student learning, and refines the strategies used to improve results for students across Michigan.
Statistics
Impact in Action
Michigan’s experience reflects a broader challenge facing state education agencies across the country: building systems capable of supporting meaningful and sustained school improvement. Through surveys, interviews, service plan analysis, and student outcome data, the evaluation helps identify which supports appear most valuable, which strategies are associated with improvement, and where additional resources may be needed.
By generating evidence about what works, for whom, and under what conditions, the evaluation helps Michigan strengthen its statewide approach to school improvement while offering lessons for other states working to build more effective systems of support.
Schools in Need:
231 schools identified for the Comprehensive Support and Improvement (CSI) included in the evaluation.
Across Districts:
167 school districts participating across Michigan.
Personnel Surveyed:
over 500 building, district, and ISD/ESA personnel surveyed annually.
Evaluation that Shapes Policy
Evaluating statewide school improvement systems presents unique challenges. Schools identified for CSI often receive support from multiple sources, including state programs, federal funding streams, and district-led initiatives, making it difficult to isolate the effects of any single intervention. In addition, each district works with a tailored approach. While this flexibility is essential, it also complicates large-scale evaluation.
Rather than treating this variation as a barrier, the evaluation uses it as an opportunity to understand how different support models function in practice. By examining patterns among schools making progress, the work helps identify the conditions under which statewide systems of support are most effective.