Treetops Consulting

Services

Start where you are.

Six ways to work together, from a focused diagnostic to strategy, design, implementation, research, and a community of practice.

Reimagine and build, together.

Every engagement helps answer three questions: what are we building, how do we build it, and is it working? Begin with a diagnostic, or go straight to the question you’re facing. Many clients start with one offer and grow into another.

Purpose

What are we trying to build?

Design

How do we build it?

Evidence

How do we know it’s working?

Data charts and colored pencils on a desk

Start here · 3–4 weeks

Treetops Diagnostic

See where you are, and where to focus first.

For: Schools and organizations that know something needs to change, but aren’t sure where to start.

What’s included

  • Interviews and focus groups with staff, board members, students, educators, and partners
  • A review of your data, documents, and current initiatives
  • A short, prioritized set of findings and recommendations
  • A working session with your leadership team

Experience

  • Community listening sessions with local partners and a school board for a citywide education foundation
  • A diagnostic to launch a teacher residency program’s strategic plan
  • Instructional systems diagnostics for schools and districts
Students walking up the steps into school

Purpose

Treetops Strategy

A research-informed strategy your team can own.

For: Organizations setting a new direction, refreshing a strategic plan, or preparing to launch something new.

What’s included

  • Research on what works, and what peers are doing
  • A theory of change with clear priorities and measures
  • Feasibility testing with the team members who will carry it out
  • A strategic plan and roadmap your team owns

Experience

  • Annual planning, an AI strategy shared nationally as a model, and a progress monitoring tool for a national nonprofit’s regional team
  • Strategic planning for two teacher preparation organizations
  • District strategic planning, including five-year plans and quarterly progress assessments
Educators working together at a planning workshop

Design

Treetops Design

Design something new with the people it serves.

For: Teams designing a school model, program, or tool, or reimagining something that isn’t working.

What’s included

  • Research on what matters for your design
  • Listening sessions with students, families, and educators
  • Co-design and prototypes tested with real users
  • A pilot plan with measures

Experience

  • Redesigning a school network’s high school model
  • Designing a human development framework for a new school
A large statewide convening in progress

Build

Treetops Implementation

Bring the plan to life, with real follow-through.

For: Leaders with a clear plan who need the capacity to make it happen across teams and partners.

What’s included

  • Project management, timelines, and decision-making structures
  • Coordination across teams, sectors, and partners
  • Progress monitoring and problem-solving along the way
  • Clear communication with stakeholders

Experience

  • Leading a citywide initiative to build a public data dashboard on what matters for students
  • A statewide convening on the environment and student success
  • Managing complex cross-sector initiatives with state agencies, districts, nonprofits, and research partners
  • Google Project Management certification
Two colleagues reviewing data together

Evidence

Treetops Research & Measurement

Know what’s working, and build systems for continuous learning.

For: Leaders who need credible evidence for their board, funders, or community, or who want to build a culture of learning.

What’s included

  • A study: evaluations, outcome studies, surveys, and focus groups
  • Improvement science: short cycles that help your team test, learn, and adjust in real time
  • Learning systems: organization-wide tools and routines for using data over time
  • Measuring flourishing: deciding how to measure school culture, belonging, and student competencies such as agency, courage, and relational intelligence

Experience

  • An early-stage pilot of an AI lesson planning tool for teachers
  • Research on nationally recognized model schools for a national education nonprofit
  • Progress monitoring systems for two teacher preparation organizations
  • Supporting school leaders in building systems to measure student flourishing through NIET’s Accelerating Character Education and Development (ACED) initiative
Caroline with the team at the EPSOs in Action conference

Learn together · Cohort

Treetops Flourishing Community of Practice

Learn alongside leaders doing the same work.

For: Leaders who want to design for flourishing and learn from peers facing the same questions.

What’s included

  • Regular facilitated sessions with a cohort of peer leaders
  • Research briefings on what’s new and what works
  • Peer problem-solving on real challenges
  • Tools and resources to take back to your team

Experience

  • Leading a university-based PreK–12 consortium of school leaders

How it works

From first conversation to lasting change.

1

A conversation

We talk about what you’re building and what’s getting in the way.

2

A clear scope

I propose the offer that fits, with timeline, deliverables, and cost.

3

Work together

Regular working sessions with your team, not a report from a distance.

4

Leave stronger

You finish with something your team can use and keep improving.

Common questions

Before we talk.

Do you work outside Tennessee?

Yes. Treetops is based in Nashville and works with schools and organizations wherever they are.

Who do you work with?

School and network leaders, and the nonprofits, foundations, and programs that prepare and support teachers and leaders.

Can we combine offers?

Yes. A diagnostic often leads into a design sprint, and a study often becomes a system your team runs on its own.

Not sure where to start? Let’s talk.

Schedule a conversation

caroline@treetopsllc.com