Student enrollment with strong diversity among students, family, and community.
Mathematics, English language arts, and science student achievement increasing over the last three years on state assessments. Outperforming neighboring districts with similar demographic makeups on state assessments.
Highly qualified, caring staff members with many advanced degrees, endorsements, and certification in multiple subject areas.
High staff retention with 32% living in the community.
Strong financial health with highest state financial rating, balanced budget
Debt free by 2025 paying off all building improvement expenses from prior referendum.
Advanced technology with devices and support to enhance teaching and learning.
District action to enhance safety and security.
Supportive community who values public education.
Our high level of communication with parents, students, and community leaders—via the newly designed website, our multilingual e-Newsletters, and consistent social media.
Student performance on state tests is still lower than pre-pandemic levels in English language arts, Mathematics, and Science.
Achievement gaps among student gender and ethnic populations exist and need to be closed.
Multi-Tiered Systems of Support (MTSS) for academic and behavioral support for students struggling and in need of acceleration need improvement.
Readiness: Kindergarten, 3rd Grade Reading on level, and placement in High School are below standards and expectations.
Staff demographics need to mirror student demographics with implications for future recruitment and hiring.
Certified Staff Satisfaction: Classroom Disruptions, Teacher Safety, Collective Responsibility, School Commitment, Quality of Student Discussion, Collaborative Practices
Involved Families Satisfaction: Every opportunity for child to be successful, Feedback on how child is learning, Safe environment, and Cleanliness & well-maintained buildings.
Support Staff Satisfaction: Ensure opinions count, Feeling recognized, Fairness to all employees, and Understand why changes are made.
Enrollment shifts: Class size, space, staffing, and resources
Opportunities: Improvement Areas
Threats: Impacts from our Environment
Student Ownership of Learning: Voice, Choice, Interests, Goal Setting, Accountability
Equity (DEI) Continuum
Transitions from elementary to middle and middle to high school.
Innovative project-oriented, inquiry-based learning instructional practices and space.
Full Day Kindergarten implementation
Middle School Experience implementation
Newcomers Needs and Belonging implementation.
Aging facilities with capital projects, replacements, remodeling, inclusive playgrounds, etc.
Parent Engagement and Education
Community Partnerships to enhance learning, teaching, as well as college, career, and life readiness.
Political unrest and world events
Safety and Violence
Student and Family Mobility
Social and emotional student and staff needs following post COVID.
Social media access, appropriate use, and platforms accountability
Evolving Technology challenges
Federal and State mandates and funding resources
Education staffing shortages
Lack of support and respect felt in the field of education due to societal unrest post pandemic.
Cybersecurity measures up to and including the requirements for ISO 27001 + 27701 certification.
Where are we now? How would you describe what is working and what needs attention in the past and present? What are the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats as described by data, information and perceptions? What does the data picture look like today?
Outcomes: The Data Retreat provides an opportunity for the Strategic Plan Team to review the following data sources:
Perception Date: Results of the Environmental Scan or other audits/assessments
Academic/Achievement/Learning data
Learning Environment data
Human Resource/Personnel data
Working Environment data
Satisfaction/Climate data (student, family, staff, community) such as the 5Essentials
Social/Emotional Student data
Demographic data (student and community)
Financial data
Facility data
Technology data
Time Allocation: 6 hours, usually 1-2 weeks following the Orientation Meeting.
Product: The Data Retreat allows the Strategic Plan Team to know strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats, and to capture baseline data so a new vision can be established. The SWOT describes the current state of the district and answers the question, “Where are we now?” Plan team members will develop a shared understanding of district performance compared to the past and to benchmark districts/state averages.
The SWOT is then shared with stakeholder groups between the Data Retreat and the Vision Retreat to solicit feedback. The feedback is reviewed at the next meeting of the team.
District Responsibilities:
The district organizes and presents data reports. Each report is approximately 40 minutes:
Academic Data: Student growth and achievement
Learning and Working Environment: Culture and climate
Resources: Financial, Facilities and Technology
The district collects and organizes the feedback from stakeholders for the plan team review of the Environmental Scan data.
The district organizes, collects, and reports stakeholder feedback data related to the draft SWOT.
It is critical that members of the strategic plan team have a shared understanding of the current performance of the district compared to past performance and the performance of other and similar districts. This understanding serves as baseline data on which improvement can be planned, compared, and reported.
Essential Question: How does today's work fit into the strategic plan "Big Picture"?
Understand the Big Picture of the strategic planning process and the role of the plan team.
Learn the purpose of today's Data Retreat.
Set outcomes for the Data Retreat. Begin what the END in mind.
Perry Soldwedel
CEC Facilitator
10 Minutes
Essential Question: What are our perceptions a bout what is going well in the district and needs to be continued and celebrated as well as what is not going well and needs attention?
Activity One: Review our perceptions about what is going well in the district and what the greatest challenges are for the future. Identify plan team member perceptions of district strengths and opportunities for improvement. Share perceptions.
Perry Soldwedel
CEC Facilitator
45 Minutes
Essential Question: What are others' perceptions about what is going well in the district and needs to be continued and celebrated as well as what is not going well and needs attention?
Activity Two: Review others' perceptions about what is going well in the district and what our greatest challenges are for the future. Learn about recent satisfaction survey results from students, teachers, support staff and families.
Jennifer Bova
Director of Community Relations
Perry Soldwedel
CEC Facilitator
BREAK - 15 MINUTES
Essential Question: What does the district data tell us?
What does trend, cohort, subgroup and comparative data tell us?
Learn about evidenced-based data.
Activity Three: Paint a data picture that describes the current performance of the district as to what is going well and what are the challenges ahead.
Reports include District State Report Card Summary Information along with important data the district collects to report its progress.
Team will rotate through three, 45 - minute reports given by district leaders.
Hear reports related to:
Student Growth and Achievement
Culture: Learning and Working Environment
Resources: Finance, Facilities and Technology
Reports will share the status of current goals through key indicators / measures.
Where possible, the report will summarize trends, subgroup student data, cohort data, and comparative data.
Where possible, the report will summarize progress toward district targets.
Perry Soldwedel
CED Facilitator
3 45-minute presentations
Rotation 1: 45 minutes
Rotation 2: 45 minutes
Rotation 3: 45 minutes
Student Achievement Presenters:
Learning and Working Environment Presenters:
Finance, Facilities and Technology Presenters.
LUNCH
Essential Question: What are the strengths and opportunities identified in our three evidenced based reports?
Activity Three continued: Teams will identify key findings from reports:
What does the data tell you?
What is there to celebrate?
What is there to consider for improvement?
What data is missing?
Teams will share their results
District Leaders
3rd Rotation
Essential Question: What are the Top 10 district strengths, the Top 10 district weaknesses, the Top 10 district opportunities, and the Top 10 district threats?
Activity Four: Conduct a SWOT analysis
Strengths
Weaknesses
Opportunities
Threats
Perry Soldwedel
CEC Facilitator
60 Minutes
Essential Question: What did we accomplish and what will be our next steps?
Activity Five: Preview the agenda and assignments for the Vision Retreat
Mission and Motto
Vision and the Portraits: Graduate, Adults and District
