Core Initiatives
LIFT
Leading Intentional Futures Together
Toward Equitable and Networked Ecosystems in Research-Community-Practice Partnerships
Highlights
This research focuses on
- How cross-sector partnerships contribute to the co-development of networked learning ecosystems that support leadership, collaborative capacity, and system-wide educational change.
- The role of intentional network strategies in facilitating cross-sector partnerships that co-design and refine equity-centered leadership approaches and assessment tools.
- How collaborative networks serve as spaces for co-designing an equity-centered framework and assessment tool that helps schools and partners critically reflect on, refine, and strengthen their leadership and learning ecosystems in contextually responsive and collectively meaningful ways.
The LIFT Project is an initiative dedicated to understanding how research-community-practice partnerships (RCPPs) co-create networked learning ecosystems that support leadership, collaboration, and equity in education. Rooted in social network theory and improvement science, LIFT builds on insights from NPLS and LINC while expanding the focus beyond schools to explore how cross-sector partnerships—including educators, policymakers, and community organizations, and beyond—intentionally shape professional networks that drive system-wide change and sustainable educational transformation.
Educational reforms require more than policy mandates and institutional structures—they depend on strategic partnerships, knowledge mobilization, and the social infrastructure that sustains long-term change. LIFT examines how cross-sector collaborations and network design create pathways for schools and their broader communities to navigate policy reform, leadership development, and evolving systemic challenges through evidence-based tools, participatory engagement, and leadership capacity building.
At its core, LIFT is about building and strengthening collaborative partnerships that connect schools with their wider ecosystems. By bringing together diverse stakeholders, this project explores how intentional, network-based approaches can inform leadership, facilitate meaningful cross-sector collaboration, and create learning environments that are responsive to different educational contexts and needs. Aligning with NetLead Lab’s broader mission, LIFT contributes to a growing body of research on network-based leadership practices that foster equity, adaptability, evidence-informed decision-making, and sustainable educational change.
Further Reading
- Díaz-Gibson, J., Liou, Y.-H., & Daly, A. J. (2025). Guest editorial: Leading schools towards ecosystems for learning and flourishing. Journal of Professional Capital and Community, 10(2), 95–97.
- Liou, Y.-H. (2025). Leadership dynamics in educational ecosystems: Examining social influence networks in school reform. Journal of Professional Capital and Community, 10(2), 98–118.
- 黃裕元、劉怡華（2025）。TIMSS主題研究趨勢與知識圖譜：2004–2024年文獻計量分析。台灣教育研究期刊6.5期刊登（預計今年9月1日出刊）Huang, Y.-Y., & Liou, Y.-H. (). Mapping two decades of TIMSS research (2004–2024): Trends, networks, and evolving themes. Journal of Taiwan Education Studies.
- Liou, Y.-H. (2025). Configuring teacher leadership in school-wide reform: A social network approach. In P. Liu & L. M. Thien (Eds.), Understanding teacher leadership: An international perspective (pp. 111–136). Routledge.
- 劉怡華、蘇玲慧（2024）。課程改革中的社會網絡：108課綱實施中學校課發會角色之混合方法個案研究。台灣教育研究期刊，5（5），167–197。（2024年9月1日出刊）
- Liou, Y.-H., & Su, L.-H. (2024). Networks for change: The role of curriculum development committees in education reform – A mixed-methods social network case study. Journal of Taiwan Education Studies.
- Liou, Y.-H., & Daly, A. J. (2023). The relational leader: Mapping the landscape of leadership and change through social networks. In Y.-H. Liou & A. J. Daly (Eds), The relational leader: Catalyzing networks for educational change (pp. 1–15). Bloomsbury.
- Liou, Y.-H., & Daly, A. J. 2023). Where are we headed? A Relationally Focused Agenda for Research and Practice in Leadership. In Y.-H. Liou & A. J. Daly (Eds), The relational leader: Catalyzing networks for educational change (pp. 280–298). Bloomsbury.
- Liou, Y.-H., & Daly, A. J. (2023). Networked systems leadership: The potential of social network theory and analysis. In Robert Tierney, Fazal Rizvi, & Kadriye Ercikan (Eds), International Encyclopedia of Education (4th Ed) (pp. 524–535). Elsevier.
- Liou, Y.-H., & Bjorklund Jr., P. (2023). Understanding teacher network formation amidst reform: A mixed-methods study on collaborative structure, network intentionality, closeness, and school climates. Teaching and Teacher Education, 134, 104296.
- 劉怡華（2021）。領導與學習的人際樣貌：以混合研究社會網絡分析法探索十二年國教變革脈絡下之校長學習。教育研究月刊，322，63–99。
- Liou, Y.-H. (2021). The social landscape of leadership and learning: A mixed methods social network approach to principal learning in times of reform. Journal of Education Research, 322-323, 63-81 (113-129). DOI: 10.3966/168063602021020322005
- Liou, Y.-H. (March 29, 2021). Learning ecosystems: Knowing when you are ready for change. Learning Ecosystem and Leadership. WISE Qatar Foundation.
- Liou, Y.-H., & Canrinus, E. T. (2020). A capital framework for professional learning and practice. International Journal of Educational Research. 100(2020 August), 101527.
- Liou, Y.-H., Moolenaar, N. M., & Daly, A. J. (2016). Developing and assessing educator beliefs about the Common Core. Educational Assessment, Evaluation and Accountability, 28(4), 377–404.
- Liou, Y.-H., Daly, A. J., Brown, C., & Del Fresno, M. (2015). Foregrounding the role of relationships in reform: A social network perspective on leadership and change. International Journal of Educational Management, 29(7), 819-837.
- Liou, Y.-H., & Daly, A. J. (2014). Closer to learning: Social networks, trust, and professional communities. Journal of School Leadership, 24(4), 753-795.
- Liou, Y.-H., Grigg, J., & Halverson, R. (2014). Leadership and the design of data-driven professional networks in schools. International Journal of Educational Leadership and Management, 2(1), 29-71.