Vision cards revisited

Waseca school board members revisited the district’s “vision cards'' at their October 6 workshop. The vision cards are part of the school district’s five-year strategic plan, which can be found on the school website. For the five-year plan, each department specifies objectives and measures for each goal included in the plan. “It’s not enough to report that we are working on these things,” Superintendent Eric Hudspith stated, “but also how we are really doing.”  Board member Dave Dunn commented that he appreciated how the district’s strategic plan was a “living, working document” that could be continually adjusted as needed. Hudspith addressed the plan’s focus area of teaching and learning by highlighting staff development. The superintendent described a survey that will be distributed to school staff 30 days after each professional development experience. “Basically it’s asking ‘Did you use this? Is this relevant to your curriculum or your classroom?’ We don't want to waste our time on things that don’t support our teachers or our students.” Board chair Julie Anderson commented that it was a “very innovative” plan. Board member Katie Youngberg agreed; “Is it useful and valuable? We do that at work.”

Also discussed were plans for a printed district newsletter that will be mailed to the community on a regular basis and the itinerary for the FFA Nationals trip on October 25. Hudspith explained his desire to review the itinerary with board members at this workshop before seeking approval at their official monthly meeting. Youngberg commented that the trip is an “awesome opportunity for leadership.”