“Evidence is only useful when it is visible, trusted, and applied — that’s how schools move forward.”
Advancing Evidence-based Educational Leadership
Helping Educational Leaders Know “What Works”
The Problem
Educational leaders face a crowded and complex marketplace. From professional development programs to intervention materials, assessment systems, and instructional resources, it can be difficult to know which options are truly research-supported and which are driven primarily by profit or marketing.
The International MTSS Association (IMA) is building a globally recognized certification and visual marker that signals rigor, reliability, and evidence-based quality. Similar to trusted labels in other industries — like Certified Organic or Gluten-Free — our goal is to make it easy for leaders to identify resources that meet high scientific and practical standards.
Our Vision
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Professional development, instructional and intervention resources, and assessment systems will be evaluated against rigorous, research-based criteria.
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By making evidence visible, leaders can confidently choose practices, programs, and tools that improve outcomes for all learners.
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Publishers, researchers, and vendors can align their offerings to a shared standard, creating a marketplace where evidence drives choice.
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Our certification is designed for broad applicability across states, districts, and international contexts, helping unify what “research-supported” means worldwide.
“Accreditation and quality standards are not just bureaucratic checks — they are vital tools that make expertise visible and trustworthy.”
— Linda Darling-Hammond
Introducing the 1st IMA-Certified MTSS Leadership Academy
The MTSS Leadership Academy is the cornerstone of IMA’s certification and visual marker initiative. Designed for school and district leaders, consultants, and trainers, the Academy provides rigorous, research-based professional learning to define the gold standard for MTSS implementation and support.
Throughout this 6-month program, participants will:
Build expertise in evidence-based leadership and systems-level MTSS implementation
Learn to evaluate interventions, assessments, and professional development programs against research-supported criteria
Gain the skills to apply IMA’s standards in their schools, districts, or consulting practice
The Academy also serves as the testing ground for the broader certification framework, helping IMA refine the criteria and processes that will guide leaders worldwide in choosing trusted, effective resources.
“The role of leadership is to change systems, not just individuals, so that effective practice can take root and flourish.”
— Edward Deming
Get Involved.
Become part of the global movement to strengthen evidence-based leadership:
Join IMA & the Leadership Stakeholder Network
Sign up to participate in our monthly network meetings. Receive just-in-time support, share strategies, and help clarify evidence-based practices for leaders.
Collaborate on Research and Standards
Work with IMA to vet training programs, interventions, resources, and tools. Help refine the standards for criteria for our certification and visual marker, ensuring rigor and relevance across all resources.
Advisory and Input Opportunities
Participate in advisory groups and provide input on standards, certification, and accreditation processes. Your perspective ensures that the tools and frameworks we create meet the real needs of leaders at all levels.
Make it easier to pick what works. Lend your voice.
IMA is developing an independent MTSS Certification and a simple “What Works” mark so schools can identify research-vetted assessments and interventions quickly.
Complete this brief survey to show how useful this would be—and what would make it work in your context.
Still unclear about MTSS?
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A prevention-first framework that organizes instruction and supports into tiers using universal screening, progress monitoring, multi-level prevention, and data-based decision making to improve outcomes for all students (Center on Multi-Tiered System of Supports, n.d.; Fuchs & Fuchs, 2006).
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RTI and PBIS are earlier multi-tier models focused on academics and behavior, respectively. MTSS integrates these domains into one coherent system across academics, behavior, and social-emotional learning (Center on Multi-Tiered System of Supports, n.d.; Fuchs & Fuchs, 2006; Sugai & Horner, 2006).
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Meta-analyses and multi-year field studies show that RTI/MTSS models improve student outcomes and system performance when teams use student-response data and implement with fidelity (Burns, Appleton, & Stehouwer, 2005; VanDerHeyden, Witt, & Gilbertson, 2007).
Practice guides further specify evidence-based routines for implementation (Gersten et al., 2009; Foorman et al., 2016).
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You’re on track when these system features are in place and used consistently:
Universal screening for all students on a set schedule with valid measures.
Evidence-based Tier 1 instruction as the protected core for every student, with routine checks that most students are meeting benchmarks.
Targeted (Tier 2) and intensive (Tier 3) interventions available and matched to need, with clear entry/exit criteria.
Progress monitoring at appropriate intervals to see if students are responding—and to adjust quickly when they’re not.
Team-based, data-driven decisions using agreed-upon decision rules during scheduled problem-solving meetings.
Fidelity of implementation verified (e.g., observation/checklists) with feedback cycles to improve practice.
(See Center on Multi-Tiered System of Supports, n.d.; National Center on Response to Intervention, 2010; Hamilton et al., 2009.)
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MTSS replaces referral-only, subjective decisions with scheduled, team reviews of data and validated practices, which reduces bias and matches support to actual student need (Center on Multi-Tiered System of Supports, n.d.; Fuchs & Fuchs, 1998).
Instead of “who gets referred,” teams look at who is responding to instruction and adjust intensity accordingly—what Fuchs & Fuchs term treatment validity—so resources are allocated based on evidence, not impressions.
Key ways MTSS drives equity in decisions:
Universal screening & multiple measures for all students on a set cadence
Clear decision rules (with disaggregated data) to trigger support and prevent subjective gatekeeping
Evidence-based interventions with fidelity checks, so teams know if practices were delivered as intended
Progress monitoring & rapid adjustments based on student response, not labels or tradition
These routines make decisions transparent, replicable, and improvement-focused across classrooms and schools (Center on Multi-Tiered System of Supports, n.d.; Fuchs & Fuchs, 1998; Hamilton et al., 2009).
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1997–2004 — Foundations & policy
Early multi-tier approaches in academics (RTI) and behavior (PBIS) emphasized response to instruction (treatment validity) and progress monitoring; IDEA 2004 allowed RTI for SLD identification, accelerating data-based support (Fuchs & Fuchs, 1998; Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act of 2004; Sugai & Horner, 2006).2010s–present — Integration
Systems increasingly integrate academics, behavior, and SEL into one framework with shared essentials: universal screening, strong Tier 1, targeted/intensive tiers, progress monitoring, team decisions, and fidelity (Center on Multi-Tiered System of Supports, n.d.; National Center on Response to Intervention, 2010; Hamilton et al., 2009; Gersten et al., 2009; Foorman et al., 2016).
“When we educate every child, we change the trajectory of communities, nations, and generations.”
— Author Unknown