Illinois School Announced as the Winner of Solution Tree’s Third Annual DuFour Award

Bloomington, IN, Feb. 22, 2018 -- Solution Tree, an educational publisher and professional development provider, has announced Woodlawn Middle School in Long Grove, Ill. as the winner of the third annual DuFour Award. The award honors one high-performing school that is recognized as a Model PLC on AllThingsPLC.info.

Woodlawn was revealed as the winner during the Summit on PLC at Work™, which took place in Phoenix, Ariz. on February 20–22, 2018. During the ceremony, Solution Tree presented the school with a check for $25,000.

“I can honestly say that no award in education means more to myself or this school than this one,” said Greg Grana, principal of Woodlawn Middle School. “Our teachers believe in our PLC and value the collaboration it takes to make our school successful.”

Solution Tree’s CEO, Jeffrey C. Jones, believes it is vitally important to highlight and celebrate outstanding schools like Woodlawn. “The work they are doing is truly exceptional,” explained Jones. “They have shown what can happen when educators from a school come together in a shared commitment to learning for all students. Woodlawn’s success serves as inspiration to many other schools around the world.”

Woodlawn’s application included an essay and short video highlighting their impressive long-term commitment and dedication to building a successful professional learning community, improving student learning and advancing instructional best practices.

Grana shared that winning the award has already given him and his team a renewed sense of purpose. “As a school, we need to keep pushing forward, examine our practices and strive for nothing short of the best. My staff is motivated and wants to show the world what makes our PLC special.”

Established in 2015, the award is named in honor of the late Dr. Richard DuFour. An award-winning educator and best-selling author, Dr. DuFour was recognized as one of the leading authorities on the PLC at Work™ process.

Previous recipients of the DuFour Award include Mason Crest Elementary in Annandale, Va., and Fern Creek High School in Louisville, Ky.

About Solution Tree

For nearly 20 years, Solution Tree has worked to transform education worldwide, empowering educators to raise student achievement. With more than 30,000 educators attending professional development events and more than 4,260 professional development days in schools each year, Solution Tree helps teachers and administrators confront essential challenges. Solution Tree has a catalog of more than 515 titles, hundreds of videos and online courses and is the creator of Global PD, an online tool that facilitates the work of professional learning communities. Follow @SolutionTree on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.

Erica Dooley-Dorocke
[email protected]
800.733.6786 ext. 247