The UIC Center for Urban Education Leadership (CUEL) announces the publication of a new study examining “intermediary organizations” as critical players in the support of school improvement, in association with the Qatar Foundation’s World Innovation Summit for Education (WISE). As the research and work on educational ecosystems has grown, we now recognize a growing global trend that has positioned “intermediary organizations” in an oversized ecosystem role. Through their direct work with schools, especially the most vulnerable schools, these organizations – which include NGOs, philanthropies, and for-profit agencies – straddle the larger ecosystem and the local schoolhouse, becoming conduits of external leadership resources into schools. In this report, Center Director Shelby Cosner and colleagues explore the activities and relationships of these organizations within the broader educational ecosystem, illuminating how other similar organizations can enhance their access to the kinds of ecosystem relationships and resources that are critical to their work and have a positive impact on schools and students.

Link to report on WISE website: https://www.wise-qatar.org/exploring-educational-ecosystems-through-the-lens-of-intermediary-organizations/

View the study findings here.