The Power of Partnerships and Collaboration
Smarter Balanced is a member-led consortium that collaborates with K-12 and higher education leaders and educators to create an assessment system that ensures teachers have the tools they need to support the diverse learning needs of students.
What makes Smarter Balanced different?
Smarter Balanced operates with a transparent, consensus-based, member-led governance structure. Members direct policy decisions, approve budgets and their educators create and review the tools and resources that comprise the assessment system.
Benefits to States
Flexible assessment system built to meet the needs of states, districts, and teachers.
Cost-sharing efforts and best practices shared across the consortium support continuous improvements to the assessment system.
Teachers are involved every step of the way in developing Smarter Balanced’s tools and resources by writing and reviewing test questions and creating standards-aligned instructional resources.
Members Lead the Consortium's Work
Smarter Balanced works closely with state education agencies to ensure that the assessment system meets the needs of each state and their teachers.
Member states, as described in our Governing Board Procedures, are critical to setting policies and implementing collaborative strategies that support student learning, growth, and success. This includes directing Smarter Balanced’s policy decisions, approving budgets, and electing members of the Executive Committee, which provides oversight for the ongoing development and management of the assessment system and the Consortium’s finances.
Smarter Balanced members and educators also participate in a wide variety of committees and advisory groups that inform the ongoing development and operation of the assessment system, including item writing, item review, data review, and instructional resources authoring.
Read more about our Governance Structure.
Smarter Balanced Members
Read more about Smarter Balanced's Governance Structure, including Executive Committee and Advisory Committee stucture.
Interested in learning more about the Smarter Balanced assessment system?
Contact us to learn how you can bring Smarter Balanced to your state or district: sb@smarterbalanced.org.