This past week the Orcas Island Public School District sent out invitations to various groups of people, including parents and students, inviting them to participate in its strategic planning process. Public school districts throughout the country convene this process every few years or so. The focus of the plan will be in the formulation of a 3-5 year road map for the district. The meeting for parents of students (and the broader community) is scheduled for May 3 at 5:30 p.m. in The School Library. Students and school staff are scheduled at other times. Participants will help provide vital feedback to our district leadership through an independent facilitator on the following:
- District strengths
- District weaknesses
- Opportunities
- Threats
- Purpose
- Goals
- Strategies
- Key takeaways
What is a Strategic Plan?
Strategic planning is the process of setting goals, deciding on actions to achieve those goals and mobilizing the resources needed to take those actions. A strategic plan describes how goals will be achieved through the use of available resources. For some people, the term strategic planning brings to mind a disciplined and thoughtful process that links the values, mission, and goals of a school system with a set of coherent strategies and tasks designed to achieve those goals.
What is the process?
Mitch Everton of Everton Consulting will facilitate on behalf of the district. Mitch has led many districts throughout Washington state in this process. He previously served for many years on the Anacortes School Board. Mitch estimates the sessions will be approximately 90 minutes in length. After meeting with the various Orcas Island constituencies, Mitch will then draft a plan to present to our School Board and Superintendent for their consideration and approval.
The benefits of this process: clear communication of district priorities to stakeholders; increased coordination in the delivery of services; resource stewardship and alignment with the community. The process is bottom-up, driven by focus group input to the board. The expectation is a finished plan, with related strategies and action plan in place for the next school year.
