The Future of Public Education
One District's Journey to Transform Schools and Systems
- Barnett Berry - University of Kansas Center for Reimaging Education, Senior Consultant
- Michael Matsuda - Anaheim Union High School District, Superintendent
- Michael Fullan - Michael Fullan Enterprises Inc., Ontario Institute for Studies in Education, Canada
Foreword by Kent McGuire
The future of school isn’t just a dream–it’s already happening.
What if we could build schools and systems that prepare every student for college, career, and life, not just for a test? It turns out, we can. The future of public education is being built right now in the Anaheim Union High School District, and this book shows you how they did it.
This isn’t just another theory; it's a practical guide—filled with rich narrative and hard evidence— to transforming education from the inside out. Following Anaheim's journey, you'll see how a mid-sized, urban district moved beyond standardized testing to create a system that truly serves its students and community. It’s a story of courage, collaboration, and a deep commitment to helping every student thrive in a rapidly changing world.
Discover how to:
- Empower teachers – unyoked from teaching to a test designed in a bygone era— to lead deeper learning innovations from the classroom up.
- Connect academic learning to real world skills through meaningful community partnerships.
- Support the whole child by prioritizing student agency and well-being alongside academics.
- Achieve remarkable results, including higher graduation rates and college and career success.
- Build cross-sector partnerships to transform teaching and learning and reposition the public good in public education.
For those who want to understand the vision and the journey toward a whole child education system, this book offers both a comprehensive picture and a vivid roadmap. A must-read for those who want to understand how educational change can connect young people to their community and their futures.
Strengthening public education is happening now. The work of AUHSD to create safe and welcoming, relevant and engaging schools where people—kids, educators, community—come first is yielding results. Barnett Berry, Mike Matsuda, and Michael Fullan help us see the what and why, along with how we can help it happen in many more communities.
Berry, Matsuda, and Fullan illuminate what’s possible when students, teachers, families, and communities work together around shared values and bold vision. Their focus on real-world learning, student voice, teacher leadership, and systemic collaboration offers inspiration and direction for every district.
The Future of Public Education is breakthrough work. Berry, Matsuda, and Fullan show us how Anaheim Union High School District is moving beyond incremental reform to genuine system transformation—placing students and teachers at the center, building community partnerships, and redefining success for the future.
Anaheim Union High School District has built partnerships rooted in trust with the community, that ensures high standards in teaching and learning are available to all students. This book examines AUHSD’s strategy to improve student outcomes over time. For educators and policy makers seeking to bring similar changes, this book is an invaluable resource.
The Future of Public Education offers a framework for leaders working to align vision, practice, and purpose in public education. It focuses on real-world implementation—how to create space for innovation, support teacher leadership, and engage students in meaningful learning. This book is a guide for those who shifting from fragmented efforts to coherent, student-centered systems.
Berry, Matsuda, and Fullan share a compelling case study of a district taking risks and making progress that has implications for all our collective efforts. While there are many paths to success, common themes scream for our attention and connection to our own work.
Readable, rigorous, and refreshingly practical, this book speaks to everyone who cares about the future of public education. It reminds us that real transformation happens only when we learn from one another, and when teachers and students are engaged as co-pilots, shaping the journey ahead.
As the leader of a business-lead collaborative, working to close the talent gap in America, Anaheim Union High School and Michael Matsuda are models of the future. This book is a must read for both educators and business leaders.
This account of Anaheim Union High School District’s transformational journey is inspiring and groundbreaking. This is a system-changing guidebook for those committed to redefining and advancing successful learning in an AI world for all young people, educators, and partners in public education.