School Programs
The Alliance's work with schools is informed by its guide to school & system improvement priorities for equity - more information here.
The Alliance works with schools to engage students and teachers as partners in their school improvement efforts for education equity
(see our Student & Teacher Champions for Education Equity Program).
We also support low-SES schools to collaborate to drive school and system improvement for greater equity (see our School + System Improvement Network).
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Our programs have been designed to specifically work with priority cohort students and with low-socioeconomic education settings, recognising their specific challenges and needs.​
If you would like to discuss further, please contact the Alliance's Founder, Tim Warwick, at tim@equityalliance.com.au
Term 1 Forum -
School culture as a critical lever for improved equity
Thursday 27th March
2.30pm to 4.30pm
Online, Free
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A strong, positive and inclusive school culture is critical to improving equity across low-SES school communities.
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This Forum will explore structures that enable strong school culture and will provide the opportunity to workshop what enables culture in your own context.
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This Forum is for Principal-Class and Middle Leaders across Victorian low-SES schools.
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Register here
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Forum Agenda
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Guest Speaker: ‘A focus on Tier 1 to improve engagement of all students’ with Associate Professor Lisa McKay-Brown
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Case studies on shifting school culture in practice
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Workshop on working systemically to strengthen school culture
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Guest Speaker: Associate Professor Lisa McKay-Brown
Associate Professor Lisa McKay-Brown is the Associate Dean Diversity and Inclusion at the Faculty of Education, University of Melbourne. Lisa has over 25 years of teaching and leadership experience in a wide range of education settings with a specific focus on the inclusion of students with disability. Internationally recognised for her research in the field of school attendance, she also serves on the Executive Board of the International Network for School Attendance.
In-School Program:
Student & Teacher Champions for Equity
An overview of the program can be accessed here.
This program supports schools to activate genuine voice & agency of Student and Teacher Champions to identify what matters most for education equity in their school community. The Champions then work together to co-design school improvement priorities aligned to the school's existing Strategic and Annual Improvement Plans.
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The school identifies two groups:
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Student Champions - 10-15 students from across student leadership and priority cohorts
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Staff Champions - 5-10 staff from across School Leadership, Wellbeing & Behaviour, and Teaching Staff (especially those passionate about equity)
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The Alliance facilitates the following activities:
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Student Champions Intro Session (2 hours) - building an understanding of education equity and identifying a set of key barriers and opportunities
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Staff Champions Intro Session (1 hours) - education equity definition, data and research; contributing to the set of barriers and opportunities
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Co-Design Workshop (2 hours) - Student and Staff Champions work together to identify school improvement actions, evidence of impact and activities to address the barriers to equity.
School + System Improvement Network
Further information on the Network can be accessed here.
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Commencing 2025, the Network will support participants (either school-based teams or individual teachers/school leaders) to:
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Share best-practice across low-SES schools;
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Build shared understanding of key improvement strategies for low-SES communities;
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Build capacity in leading improvement in complex environments;
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Establish a network of school and system leaders to collaborate on change.
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We are fortunate to be partnering with Orange Compass, experts in improving complex systems, as well as some experienced School Improvement Critical Friends on this Network.
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The Network will initially focus on low-SES schools across Outer Melbourne. We are looking for school leaders who are passionate about seeing improvement in our schools and education system, who have a deep understanding of their context and a track record of successful implementation of improvement priorities. ​​
Additional offerings
The Alliance provides the following additional programs to further support school improvement for education equity:​
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Implementation and Monitoring Support - Student and Staff Champions are supported to monitor implementation through Learning Walks and Structured De-Briefs
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Whole Staff Professional Learning - Student and Staff Champions are supported to share the learnings
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School Leadership Team De-Briefs - Student and Staff Champions are supported to share the learning with their Leadership Team to support reflection and identifying next steps
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Wellbeing & Inclusion Framework Co-Design - Student and Staff Champions are supported to lead the co-design of a Wellbeing & Inclusion Framework based on multi-tiered systems of support.
Supporting Resources
The following documents underpin the Education Equity Alliance's work.
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The Alliance's Ethics Statement sets out its guidelines for its ethical and responsible engagement with young people. This includes both the benefits of engagement, risk mitigation, and how student contributions are used appropriately.
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The Alliance's Child Safety and Wellbeing Policy and Code of Conduct covers how the Alliance meets its legal and ethical obligations to ensure the safety and wellbeing of the students it works with.
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The Alliance's Reading Guide sets out the key literature and research that underpin its approach towards both equity and system-change.
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