Approved at 5/13/2008 Board Meeting

Board Work Session
Central Administrative Offices Board Room
April 29, 2008

Present:  Allgaier, Gehl, Jones, Marcello, Schwei, Wartman, and Ziegler
Also:      Gibson, Armato, Borch, Conley, Depka, Geyser, Hedstrom, 
             Stavros, Stewart, and Thompson

President Meg Wartman called the meeting to order at 6:05 p.m. Public notice of the meeting was provided in accordance with Chapter 19.85 Wis. Stats. Motion by Tom Gehl that the Board of Education approves the April 29, 2008 agenda. Seconded by Glen Allgaier. Strategic Planning Team members, as listed above, were welcomed to the meeting. Dr. Bob Ewy, stated the purpose of the meeting was to review the drafted Strategic Plan.

District Mission:

The District Mission was supported to remain as written "The mission of the School District of Elmbrook is to educate and inspire every student to think, to learn, and to succeed."

District Vision:

The District Vision statement was revised as follows:

The future of the School District of Elmbrook is to be an exemplary district with an uncompromising commitment to achieve powerful results for all students.

Students who are educated by the School District of Elmbrook communicate effectively, master core academic subjects, and have the ability to:

  • solve complex academic and real-life problems,
  • become independent analytical thinkers,
  • develop interpersonal skills,
  • use technology appropriately,
  • make ethical decisions,
  • understand differences in world cultures, and
  • exhibit creativity,

Leadership and service are valued and fostered. Each student graduates prepared for success.

All staff collaborates to deliver exceptionally strong, balanced programming through relevant, dynamic instruction focused on student learning. We demonstrate our commitment to continuous improvement through research, ongoing professional development, and use of best practice. We work relentlessly to develop meaningful connections with every student to ensure success.

Families and community participate in the life of the schools through partnerships and volunteering with the district to support the mission and vision. The district values the strong partnership, effectively communicates, and safeguards the community's investment.

The culture of the School District of Elmbrook is built on a commitment to excellence and continuous improvement. Together we celebrate success.

 
District Challenges:

External challenges for the next five years were developed from the recent survey of District staff and community and include the following with the greatest challenges listed first:

  • Maintaining and improving the range of quality of education programs that exist in the District
  • Attracting, developing, and retaining quality staff members
  • Improving community trust in the Board of Education and District administration
  • Addressing the issues of declining enrollments
  • Maintaining the District's competitive advantage in the region
  • Ensuring that students and staff learn and work in a secure/safe environment
  • Responding to the constraints of state revenue caps
  • Long-term facility improvements (at the time of the survey, this was listed as the #1 challenge; however, since passage of the April 1, 2008 referendum to improve high school facilities, it was felt that this challenge could move to this location)

District Strategic Objectives:

Five strategic objectives were drafted to address the District challenges. The strategic objectives, targets for each objective, and operational definitions will be refined by subcommittees of the Strategic Planning Team and will be forwarded to Dr. Ewy for preparation of a second draft.

Mission Strategic Objective Student Learning – During the meeting, the objective was discussed and will be refined by a subcommittee. Ten targets were identified for the Student Learning Objective. The Strategic Planning team identified the first five targets as "tier one" and the last five targets as "tier two". In the first tier, the targets were numbered 1) bullet #1, 2) combining bullets #3 and #4, 3) bullet #2, and 4) bullet #5. Refined strategic objective targets and operational definitions will be forwarded by Bob Borch who will send to Dr. Ewy for preparation of the second draft.

Mission Strategic Objectives: Constituent Satisfaction, Employee Development, Alignment of Support Systems, and Fiscal Responsibility – These objectives were developed to support the Student Learning objective. Subcommittees will refine the strategic objectives, targets, and operational definitions, forward to Bob Borch, who will send to Dr. Ewy for preparation of the second draft.

Next steps for the Strategic Plan will include 1) subcommittees providing feedback to Bob Borch by May 6 so he can provide subcommittee feedback to Bob Ewy on May 6; 2) Bob Ewy providing second draft Strategic Plan to the Strategic Planning Team via Bob Borch by May 13; 3) District Deployment Team and Principals meeting on May 16 to develop measures for each strategic objective; 4) reconvening the Strategic Planning Team following the May 16 meeting; 5) and Board Process and Approval to begin in June following the Strategic Planning Team meeting.

Motion by Glen Allgaier to adjourn the meeting. Seconded by Steve Schwei and carried on a voice vote. The meeting adjourned at 8:51 p.m.

/s/Meg Wartman, Board President