WPCNR SCHOOL DAYS. By John F. Bailey. June 28, 2006: The Board of Education is nearing agreement with a strategic planning firm to pay a planning consultant to orchestrate a communitywide “planning review” to formulate school district goals, issues, and policies over the next 15 years, and identify and establish policy decisions.
The firm has been selected, but not officially announced yet by the Board, pending agreement on a contract. Superintendent of Schools Timothy Connors stated he expected the firm would being in the fall and take eight months to execute the review. The “Strategic Plan Review” is being done independently of the Capital Projects review Connors has said previously because the planning organizations the district has been considering indicated linking the capital projects to the Planning Review was too much for the district to undertake simultaneously. Both planners being considered have told the district according to Connors that short-term facilities requirements should not be linked to long range planning.
Connors informed the Board of Education Monday evening that the Strategic Planning process would begin this fall with data collection from the district, interviews with district residents, school personnel and the Board, all stakeholders. Part of the process would consist of the forming of another city wide committee of stakeholders, numbering 75 to 100 people, whom the Strategic Planner would orchestrate through a process to evaluate, articulate and prioritize long term goals and objectives of the School District involving how students are educated, considering academic goals, growth of the district, school facilities, demographics, and community involvement, and other issues.
Connors said he would take responsibility for selecting the members of the Strategic Planning Committee which would be working with the Planner.
When it was suggested by Board Member Bill Pollak citizens be invited to volunteer for this committee at this time, Connors said to do so now would be premature, since the process had not been defined in detail.
