The Leadership and Policy Center for Thriving Schools and Communities (THRIVE) was established in 2021 on the campus of the University of Oklahoma in Tulsa. THRIVE is a resource for the State of Oklahoma and its education policymakers at the state, district, community, and school levels. OU social scientists from both the Norman and Tulsa campuses, and from various disciplines, are tapped as needed to address research and evaluation needs as they are identified. Some projects are identified by the central core scholars of THRIVE and published as policy white papers or scholarly publications. Other research projects are contracted with civil and governmental agencies. Some research projects may be ongoing partnerships with civic or educational entities for longitudinal research informing policy and practice.
Leadership at all levels is central to the work of thriving schools and communities, yet traditional leadership models and frameworks are insufficient to guide leaders in generating structures and conditions in which human potential is energized. New paradigms, frameworks, structures, and practices are needed to bring innovative responses to entrenched social and educational problems. The Leadership and Policy Center for Thriving Schools and Communities does this. It responds to the salient community needs through engaged scholarship that is situated in and carried out through research, teaching, and service.
The University of Oklahoma’s strategic plan establishes the bold purpose of – We Change Lives. To change lives requires the thoughtful and strategic use of resources within and across degree programs, research, teaching, and service. The Leadership and Policy Center for Thriving Schools and Communities bridges boundaries between research, policy, and practice and it establishes the infrastructure to deepen and extend our respective work in and with communities.
