The current strategic plan reaches its end with the conclusion of the 2024-2025 school year. The District is poised to adopt a new plan in August 2025. As part of a more collaborative strategic planning process, the following stakeholder groups were assembled and started to meet in January 2025: students, support staff, Superintendent/Teacher Advisory Council, and community members. All groups have reviewed data sets and identified areas of strength and improvement. The Executive Leadership Team completed a root cause analysis process, which led to the development of the six goal statements, aligned to the priority areas of systems and structures, leadership, instruction, and culture. As with our school growth plans, we operate under the theory of action that if adult practices improve, then student outcomes will improve.
Recently, a survey was conducted to gauge community perspective relative to the new strategic plan goals and to gather input on what metrics our community feels best represent the overall health of the district within the areas of academics, school culture, and finance and operations. There were 1,155 responses, which corresponds to an 11% response rate. The following is a summary of the survey results.
Looking at the continuum of prioritization, the following goals garnered the highest percentage of each priority rating (1-6).
Priority Rating 1. The district will improve academic and social-emotional outcomes for students by hiring effective educators and maximizing employee retention.
Priority Rating 2. All educators will teach to the rigor of the grade level standards and engage in collaborative planning to ensure high-quality instructional delivery.
Priority Rating 3. Effective planning and instruction will be supported by providing feedback to educators in order to improve student outcomes.
Priority Rating 4. Effective planning and instruction will be supported by providing feedback to educators in order to improve student outcomes.
Priority Rating 5. The district will strengthen students' Academic and Career Planning through consistency of its implementation and through professional learning for staff.
Priority Rating 6*. The district will strengthen students’ Academic and Career Planning through consistency of its implementation and through professional learning for staff.
Priority Rating 6*. The district will enhance the Academic and Career Planning experience for students and families by expanding opportunities, resources, and establishing clear universal communication mechanisms.
Priority Rating 6*: Effective planning and instruction will be supported by providing feedback to educators in order to improve student outcomes.
*Three goal statements tied for the highest percentage of priority ranking of 6.
The six goal statements garnered the following percentage of respondents ranking them the highest priority (1):
The district will improve academic and social-emotional outcomes for students by hiring effective educators and maximizing employee retention. (43%)
All educators will teach to the rigor of the grade level standards and engage in collaborative planning to ensure high quality instructional delivery. (25%)
The district will demonstrate operational efficiency and prudent management through a long range plan for facilities, budgeting, and staffing projections. (17%)
The district will enhance the Academic and Career Planning experience for students and families by expanding opportunities, resources, and establishing clear universal communication mechanisms. (8%)
The district will strengthen students' Academic and Career Planning through consistency of its implementation and through professional learning for staff. (4%)
Effective planning and instruction will be supported by providing feedback to educators in order to improve student outcomes. (3%)
With respect to the metrics to monitor the overall health of the district, the following were the top three in each category.
The top metrics will be part of the new strategic plan and serve as the monitoring metrics for the six goals. The feedback gathered around the goal prioritization allows us to gauge what is important to the WSD community and where we need to create more clarity and context. Regular updates will be shared around the new strategic plan. Our community can expect the Board of Education to adopt a new strategic plan in August 2025. For more information, please see the resources linked below.