January 2, 2009
Seacoast Online
FREMONT — The School Board and administration have begun the task of sorting out its strategic planning goals, as recommended by NESDEC (the New England School Development Council).
The board met Dec. 16 in a work session to go over the recommendations, which were released in draft form earlier this month. The report identified six “strategic targets” broken down into several goals for each target.
The target areas are communications, curriculum/student achievement, staffing and staff development, both academic and behavioral student expectations, facility/space needs, and grade and administrative organization.
Board Chairman Jeff Rowell emphasized this process is different from that of the Long-Range Planning Committee headed by Kevin Herrmann. That committee is looking mainly at facility needs, he said, while the strategic plan looks more at what happens in the classroom.
While the board wants to implement the recommendations for overall school improvement, it is also using the NESDEC report to define what it wants to see in the next middle school principal. Middle School principal Kelli Killen resigned last spring, and William Marston of Concord is interim principal.
For example, Superintendent Normand Tanguay said, the board will most likely look for someone “strong in communication” as it begins its principal search.
The board first addressed the communication target, and set priorities. The first priority will be “improving communications between the school and parents.” The second priority is “find time for discussion about curriculum among the staff,” while the third is “improve communication between the administration and staff.”
The fourth is to “seek the support of the community through communications” with surveys and addressing areas of concern. The fifth goal is to develop a “community school,” a process that all the previous goals will support.
The board also tackled the curriculum/student achievement piece Tuesday night. Its first priority under curriculum and achievement will be finding time for discussion among staff, as in the communications objective, and clarifying what children need to know. Other goals under curriculum include attaining and improving Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP), assessing curriculum sequence and coordination, and implementing the Follow the Child program.
The curriculum and achievement goal will also tie into the principal search, Rowell said. “We will want someone with a strong background in curriculum development and assessment,” he said.
Elementary principal Dawn Lewis reminded the board that her new co-principal won’t be responsible for everything. “I don’t think the strategic plan should be ‘dumped’ on anyone in particular,” she said.
Rowell agreed, pointing out, “It’s not a one-person show.”
Implementing the plan will involve more than people within the footprint of Ellis School, according to board members. “I think the school board should promote this as a collaborative process,” board member Marian Guidoboni said.
Vice Chairwoman Peg Pinkham urged her fellow members to involve the town at large. “We can get a fresh perspective,” she said.
For more information, call the SAU office at 895-6903.