--- title: "Folio Whitepaper: Creating a Culture of Collaboration" description: What would it take for schools to become more collaborative places? What practices distinguish highly collaborative organizations? image: https://blog.foliocollaborative.org/hubfs/Stock%20images/Large%20Stock%20Images/1280-Circle%20of%20hands.jpg --- [![Folio Site Logo 250 x 100 px](https://blog.foliocollaborative.org/hs-fs/hubfs/Folio%20Site%20Logo%20250%20x%20100%20px.png?width=175&height=70&name=Folio%20Site%20Logo%20250%20x%20100%20px.png "Folio Site Logo 250 x 100 px")](https://foliocollaborative.org/) [![Folio Collaborative company logo](https://blog.foliocollaborative.org/hs-fs/hubfs/Logos/Folio_ColoronTrans_Full%20lockup%20horz.png?width=1801&height=1500&name=Folio_ColoronTrans_Full%20lockup%20horz.png "Folio Collaborative company logo")](https://foliocollaborative.org/) This is a search field with an auto-suggest feature attached. - There are no suggestions because the search field is empty. - [Speak with an expert](https://meetings.hubspot.com/alaena1/consultation-call) - Solutions - [Our Approach](https://foliocollaborative.org/our-approach) - [Platform](https://foliocollaborative.org/solutions) - [Professional Learning](https://foliocollaborative.org/professional-learning) - [Research](https://foliocollaborative.org/the-state-of-faculty-growth-in-independent-schools) - [Events](https://45568612.hs-sites.com/folio-events) - [Resources](https://blog.foliocollaborative.org) - [Newsletter](https://info.foliocollaborative.org/the-folio-quarterly-professional-growth-delivered) - [Members](https://foliocollaborative.org/member-schools) - About - [Board of Directors](https://foliocollaborative.org/board-of-directors) - [Advisory Board](https://foliocollaborative.org/advisory-board) - [Team](https://foliocollaborative.org/team) - [Company](https://foliocollaborative.org/about-2) - [Careers](https://foliocollaborative.org/about-2#careers) - [Contact Us](https://foliocollaborative.org/contact) # Folio Whitepaper: Creating a Culture of Collaboration by [The Folio Team](https://blog.foliocollaborative.org/author/admin)   |   Mar 25, 2021 What would it take for schools to become more collaborative places? What practices distinguish highly collaborative organizations? And if we believe that collaboration enhances learning among students, how can we help teachers learn in more collaborative ways as well? Our team at the Folio Collaborative believes that finding more effective ways to support and enhance collaboration among teachers will benefit the overall quality of teaching and learning in our schools. For the past few years, with support from the McDonogh School and the E.E. Ford Foundation, we have investigated how to help schools foster teacher growth and improvement through systematic approaches to collaboration. We are proud to release a white paper —**Creating a Culture of Collaboration: The Building Blocks of Transformational Teamwork**— that documents our findings from this work. [![FREE DOWNLOAD Creating a Culture of Collaboration  ](https://no-cache.hubspot.com/cta/default/45568612/interactive-172727632495.png)](https://blog.foliocollaborative.org/hs/cta/wi/redirect?encryptedPayload=AVxigLJRheYy%2BR9XAhpX4Pquc8zYlU0ysQltMShAoGB%2FQyRNoP4CG787SBphzvylIbwegseK8e%2B340AO353ZCRRBV8gvrf68Gcdw8kY5EoY0gHbSoG7FjlIuMpDoyLFE6kdGfxm26RzhJV%2BQYwiyGYYkF2Ceb3NrsZ58x5wjv0AaJzgoeeE6MN6hM68yFJYOuqaHkjZIDLhDLqxqhlc6Tpee%2ByFJnRrjmPvz5DeB8mcqTnUQfIrlWJ5aabEfW7uLIyGmkP%2BMNSGUy8NvoGxcwRmBYKtFnqpBfA%3D%3D&webInteractiveContentId=172727632495&portalId=45568612) Our project began with a design team composed of teachers and school leaders from our Folio member schools around the nation. They visited a set of highly-collaborative schools, non-profits, and for-profit companies to identify best practices. Among others, we visited a professional sports team, a Fortune 500 online retail company, a medical center and medical school, one of the world’s largest technology companies, a leading graduate school of design, and a collection of schools from around the country whose practices sit at the cutting edge of a variety of aspects of education. We then synthesized these research findings into a set of five core elements. These core building blocks informed the design of a suite of new features in our software platform, as well as serving as the basis for a framework and accompanying white paper to help schools become more collaborative workplaces. We are tremendously excited to share this white paper with the world. Not only does it represent the hard work of so many members of our team as well as the efforts of our collaborators, we are also confident that these findings will serve as a catalyst for schools around the country hoping to transform into more collaborative places to work and to learn. We hope you’ll download the white paper today and that you’ll share with us your reactions, responses, and the ways in which it inspires you to create change! #### About the author The Folio Team [Follow me on my website](https://foliocollaborative.org/) [Follow me on LinkedIn](https://www.linkedin.com/company/foliocollaborative/) Folio is your partner in facilitating professional growth strategies that last. Our customizable framework empowers school leaders to help their teachers thrive and our platform sustains the process. Originally spun out of McDonogh School and proudly built in Baltimore, Maryland, Folio is a 501(c)3 not-for-profit used by independent schools nationwide. Topics:   [teacher retention](https://blog.foliocollaborative.org/tag/teacher-retention) ,   [evaluation & growth](https://blog.foliocollaborative.org/tag/evaluation-growth) ,   [learning community & culture](https://blog.foliocollaborative.org/tag/learning-community-culture) ,   [Goals](https://blog.foliocollaborative.org/tag/goals) ### Related posts [Starting Strong with Strategic Professional Growth Setup](https://blog.foliocollaborative.org/starting-strong-with-strategic-professional-growth-setup) [Folio Collaborative: Helping Schools Deliver On Their Value Proposition](https://blog.foliocollaborative.org/folio-collaborative-helping-schools-deliver-on-their-value-proposition) [Leverage myFolio Reports to Deepen Practice and Institutional Impact](https://blog.foliocollaborative.org/leverage-myfolio-reports-to-deepen-practice-and-institutional-impact) [The Lifeline to Why I Love Teaching: How Grace Church School Transformed End-of-Year Conversations](https://blog.foliocollaborative.org/the-lifeline-to-why-i-love-teaching-how-grace-church-school-transformed-end-of-year-conversations) [A Unified System for a Unified Mission: Support and Feedback for Faculty and Staff](https://blog.foliocollaborative.org/a-unified-system-for-a-unified-mission-support-and-feedback-for-faculty-and-staff) [Five Appreciation Fridays: A Leadership Discipline for Catching People Doing Something Right](https://blog.foliocollaborative.org/five-appreciation-fridays-a-leadership-discipline-for-catching-people-doing-something-right) [Making Accreditation Your Blueprint for School Health](https://blog.foliocollaborative.org/making-accreditation-your-blueprint-for-school-health) [6 Ways to Elevate Feedback and Well-being with myFolio's Mindful Minute](https://blog.foliocollaborative.org/6-ways-to-elevate-feedback-and-well-being-with-myfolios-mindful-minute) [The Power of Holistic Teacher Observation and Feedback](https://blog.foliocollaborative.org/the-power-of-holistic-teacher-observation-and-feedback) ©  2026 COPYRIGHT Folio Collaborative. 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