D65 Strategic Planning Process Continues

District 65 has finally posted the notes of the previous strategic
planning committee meeting, on May 10th, to the D65 website, and an
agenda for the meeting this Saturday, May 31. There is also a copy of
the "Vision Story," which shows what D65 might be like in the year
2018. I especially encourage you to read that document and see if
it describes the school district that you envision for the future.

The meeting this Saturday begins at 9:00 am with a public hearing: "An
opportunity for any stakeholder in District 65 to provide input to the
Planning Team." I encourage anyone who wants to have input into this
process to attend this portion of the meeting, since this is the last
meeting before the Planning Team creates a Working Draft of the
Strategic Plan.

At previous meetings the committee drafted a tentative mission
statement for the district: "Educating each student to succeed and
contribute in our global community by cultivating creativity,
compassion and the pursuit of excellence," and identified a set of
core values.

The Planning Team will be developing long term goals in six different
areas: Curriculum (Goals, content, scope, etc.); Instruction
(Methodology and organization) Student and Family Support (School
Climate); Staff and Instructional Program Support; Community Outreach
and Services; Facilities and Finance.

There will be additional opportunities for the public to comment:
"During the summer and early fall, public hearings at which
individuals can comment on the Draft and make recommendations for
change will be held for District administrators, principals, the
public, teachers and support staff. All comments received will be
presented to the Planning Team prior to a meeting in the fall. At
that time, a determination will be made relative to revising the
original draft based on the input received." Essentially, the public
will be allowed to react to a plan already drafted.

All the documents and information about the committee are available
here: http://district65.net/goto/Strategic_Planning