Christine Schaefer

Education team member, writer, editor

Baldrige Excellence Program, The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST)

Christine Schaefer joined the Baldrige Performance Excellence Program in 2005, after nearly 15 years in nonprofit publishing, largely editing education-related periodicals and books. As an education team member, Schaefer writes, edits, and serves in other capacities at Baldrige including public outreach, the Baldrige Award process, and volunteer training. She has served as the editing team leader and a work group member on the Baldrige staff. Schaefer has a bachelor’s degree in interdisciplinary political and social thought from the University of Virginia, and a master’s degree from Georgetown University.

Thu, 05/01/2025 - 12:02
Make Innovation in Your Organization ‘Ordinary and Accessible’An interview with José Pires
Wed, 04/02/2025 - 12:01
José Pires, founder and CEO of Global Excellence & Innovation, has helped large and small organizations across multiple industries transform their leadership to achieve better results. Based on his decades of experience guiding organizations…
Insights on Adopting AIAdvice from an innovation expert
Mon, 03/24/2025 - 12:02
With the right approach, artificial intelligence isn’t “just a tool.” It can be “a real-time decision-making partner”—one that “empowers the workforce, making knowledge more accessible while ensuring that organizations have faster and smarter…
More Reasons to Apply to Be a 2025 Baldrige ExaminerTwo highly experienced examiners talk about the value of the position
Thu, 01/30/2025 - 00:03
In a recent blog, I provided many reasons to apply to be a 2025 Baldrige examiner. The benefits of serving in this volunteer role were conveyed by three highly experienced Baldrige examiners with career expertise from the business, K-12 education,…
Leadership Insights From the Baldrige Award-Winning City of Germantown, Tennessee‘Our Baldrige journey has enabled us to destroy many of the belief systems that keep governments from improving’
Thu, 11/11/2021 - 11:03
When the City of Germantown, Tennessee, was named a Baldrige Award recipient in 2019, the small suburb of Memphis (just 20 square miles in size) became only the fourth city to earn the prestigious, presidential award for organizational excellence.…
Improving Quality of Life in America, One Community at a TimeBaldrige-based nonprofit helps communities align and integrate toward excellence
Tue, 05/18/2021 - 12:02
If you care about improving your local economy, education, community health, or other aspects of residents’ quality of life, you may benefit from learning about the initiatives of Communities of Excellence 2026. One place you can read a concise…
To Be a Baldrige Examiner: ‘Truly Committed to Helping’‘My first training felt like drinking from a fire hose.’
Tue, 02/11/2020 - 12:02
Robert Rouzer is retired, but he may be busier than ever as a Baldrige volunteer. In recent years, Rouzer has served not only as a Baldrige examiner for the Baldrige Performance Excellence Program, but also as a state-level examiner for two Baldrige…
Still Improving (and Dancing) Despite Budget CutsThe effect of the Baldrige Award 15 years later
Wed, 02/22/2017 - 12:01
Last month, 2001 Baldrige Award-winning University of Wisconsin-Stout hosted a lively campus engagement session. (See for yourself via this video of the live-streamed event, which kicked off with dancing.) The university holds the “You Said... We…
What Does That Have to Do With the Baldrige Excellence Framework?Excellence can turn up in the oddest places
Wed, 10/19/2016 - 15:11
To entertain you, to grab your attention, and (of course) to advance your understanding of the Baldrige Excellence Framework, staff members who contribute to this blog have occasionally written some odd posts—or, at least, given them curious titles…
Bringing a Systems Approach to U.S. Population HealthNew framework could provide evidence-based reporting and improve effectiveness of healthcare workforce
Wed, 10/05/2016 - 16:14
Every year a new cohort of Baldrige Executive Fellows gains intensive knowledge about leading organizations to excellence through cross-sector, peer-to-peer learning hosted at the sites of Baldrige Award recipients. Every Baldrige Fellow completes…
Baldrige Fans Share Their Criteria-Based ResolutionsThe Baldrige framework applies to everything from golf clubs to vocabularies
Tue, 01/19/2016 - 17:00
A question for devotees of the Baldrige Excellence Framework: Do people who passionately promote continuous improvement within organizations also tend to make New Year’s resolutions to improve their own well-being? Seriously, I’m wondering if…