A rubric is a coherent set of criteria that includes descriptions of levels of performance quality on the criteria. (ASCD, 2013) In the Leading by Convening (LbC) Blueprint, rubrics describe the behavior of systems, leaders and stakeholders as they build authentic engagement.

Rubrics are often said to be ‘as good as their description.’ In LbC, all rubrics have been written by a diverse group of stakeholders with a wide variety of experiences in leading and participating in collaborative efforts. Through this process, these rubrics uniquely capture and present the stakeholder experience in system collaboration.

As written, rubrics are descriptive, not evaluative. But, when used to compare current levels of interaction against those described in the rubric, they provide a useful way to assess interaction and deepening levels of engagement.

The RDA/SSIP rubrics

Four new rubrics were developed to support LbC as a tool in Results Driven Accountability (RDA) and the State Systemic Improvement Plan (SSIP). Stakeholder engagement is a core principle in Results Driven Accountability (RDA) and State Systemic Improvement Plan (SSIP). Each of the rubrics addresses an aspect of engagement that can help states increase stakeholder participation and build active engagement.

Using the LbC Rubrics

Each LbC rubric describes a set of observable behaviors focused on a change in the practice of authentic stakeholder engagement. The rubrics can be used by teams to:

• discuss authentic engagement from the viewpoint of the stakeholders;
• assess current levels of interaction;
• guide future interaction;
• routinely assess changes in perception and practice; and
• chronicle changes in outcomes as engagement deepens.

Rubrics typically list criteria in the left column and describe levels of performance in columns moving to the right. This arrangement creates cells that describe the performance at each level for each criterion. In the LbC rubrics, the criterion column is called an “operational decision.” Operational decisions result when a team examines both the technical and adaptive aspects of the change it envisions and defines several important aspects of interaction that will require attention.

Each rubric is interactive. Follow the image below to see how you can interact with the rubrics as you move towards greater depths of interaction.