Strategic planning, community engagement process to begin

Lyons Township High School District 204 will launch a strategic planning process that will include plans for community engagement to gather input from parents, staff, community members, alumni and students. The process is designed to obtain input from all stakeholders for the adoption of a strategic plan that will help inform the District's future plans.

"The involvement of stakeholders from every part of our school community will result in a long-term framework for decision-making that builds upon our shared priorities" said Superintendent Dr. Brian Waterman. "We are excited to launch this inclusive strategic planning process and engage stakeholders from all 11 communities we serve, which will help strengthen our partnership.”

Dr. Waterman added, "The strategic planning process will be collaborative, and it will allow us to honor our traditions, innovate together and inspire the future of LT."

A diverse group comprised of approximately 80 students, staff, parents, community members, and district leaders will serve on the strategic planning team. They will meet five times between January and May to discuss survey results, analyze district data, and develop a proposed plan that will be shared with our school community. Information that includes opportunities to participate will be forthcoming.

The most valuable piece of this process will be feedback. Throughout the strategic planning journey, LT will be seeking input from our school community. The first opportunity to provide feedback will be in the form of a survey, which will open later this month. The survey link also will be published on the district’s website and its social media channels in an effort to gather as much feedback as possible. Results from this survey will be provided at a data retreat and guide the strategic planning team throughout the process.

All of the data collected through interviews, focus groups, and surveys, along with the district's mission statement, vision statement and guiding principles will be analyzed to determine findings, as well as long-term goals and objectives for the District. The strategic plan will serve as a shared vision for all district stakeholders and provide the blueprint for our work in the coming years.

Consortium for Educational Change (CEC) has been selected to assist in the facilitation of the strategic planning process. CEC provides schools and districts with a systemic, collaborative approach by identifying their unique challenges and assists in building a district’s capacity for continual improvement.

During the week of January 10, a communication will be sent to all LT stakeholders that will include additional information regarding this important process.