St. Charles School District expected to have new strategic plan by spring

Efforts continue to move forward on developing a new strategic plan for St. Charles School District 303.

Superintendent Paul Gordon gave an update to school board members during Monday’s meeting. A committee comprised of students, staff members, board members and school and district administrators is working on the plan.

“We are really looking for the strategic plan to be in the board’s hands in May,” Gordon told board members.

Board members previously decided that belonging, perseverance and achievement should be the values that drive the new plan.

“These core values will be woven throughout all of our strategic plan,” Gordon said.

Board Vice President Joseph Lackner previously had said he would like students to have a sense of belonging.

“I would like every student that participates in D-303 to feel that they belong here and not only that they belong here, but that their school experience belongs to them,” he said.

Board member Matthew Kuschert made the case that perseverance should be one of the values driving the new strategic plan.

“Without perseverance, you are not going to have achievement,” he said.

A portion of the strategic plan is called Portrait of a Learner/Graduate. District officials said the goal of Portrait of a Learner/Graduate is to provide a framework that informs the strategic plan and helps the district decide how to provide students the experiences and opportunities that help them develop the competencies they need when they graduate.

Schaumburg-based firm Hazard, Young, Attea & Associates gathered community input on what academic skills are important. Strong written and oral communication skills along with reading comprehension top the list.

HYA and Associates finished its work with the district in August upon presenting data to inform the district’s Profile of a Graduate, said Scott Harvey, the district’s chief communications officer.

“Current work on the strategic plan, which includes finalizing the Profile of a Graduate, core values and strategic priorities, is being conducted solely by members of the Strategic Plan Development Committee,” he said. “Moving forward, the committee will seek feedback from District 303 staff and community members.”

Harvey said in developing the final plan, the strategic plan development committee will use continuous feedback loops to gather input/insights from the board and other stakeholders throughout the district.