North Syracuse Central School District budget to align with Strategic Mission - March, 2013

District outlines plan to better prepare students - August 2, 2012

In a commitment to raise student performance and better prepare every student for the future, the North Syracuse Central School District Board of Education supports the district’s Three-Year Strategic Plan.

The plan outlines general goals and lists specific initiatives designed to improve education at North Syracuse.

“We can look at our programs and our level of student achievement and confidently say that we are a good school district, but that cannot be good enough” said Superintendent of Schools Dr. Kim Dyce Faucette.

“As a school district, we cannot risk our children’s futures by not having a clear direction. The world around us is changing and we can no longer afford to give our students just a good education—as we have in the past. The goal in introducing this plan is to provide a roadmap that moves us from being good to being great.”

The three-year plan is founded on a clear vision that raises expectations for students, respects diversity and fosters an environment where school, home, and community work together to achieve the district’s mission of raising the standards for all students, closing the gap for those who struggle, and preparing every child for success in college, career and as global citizens.

The board of education is especially pleased that the final product is not a top-down document; rather the ideas come from those who will ultimately bring the plan to life. Teachers, unions, district and board leaders, students, parents, and community members all contributed to the plan through staff and community meetings, surveys and informal conversations.

To ensure that this plan is fully implemented, the Board of Education adopted a new district organizational structure that clearly assigns roles and responsibilities and heightens personal accountability.

“Our overall purpose in sharing this information is to say to our community that we are on a path toward excellence. We are asking everyone – students, parents, staff members, taxpayers and the business community, to join us as we commit to these lofty goals. Together, we will make the North Syracuse Central School District one of the finest school districts in the state,” said Dr. Dyce Faucette.

Dr. Dyce Faucette noted that as people read the plan, they may have further thoughts about how the district can achieve the plan’s goals.

“We welcome your suggestions as it will take all of us working collaboratively to implement steady and long-term changes,” she said.

The district’s Strategic Plan, organizational structure and listing of administrative responsibilities can be download via the links below.

For more information, please contact Dr. Kim Dyce Faucette, Superintendent of Schools, North Syracuse Central School District at kdyce@nscsd.org.

Our Imperative for Change: Student Success...In a Changing World

What is The Strategic Plan?

The North Syracuse Central School District has developed a Strategic Plan to ensure that we continue to build upon our successes and also address our challenges. The process of developing a plan included creating a new vision, mission, and goals that will serve as a road map to guide the district’s progress along the path from good to great.  The plan is intended to:

•    Communicate the overall direction and changes for the district.
•    Focus and align the district’s work and our resources.
•    Help our community and partners understand the work ahead.
•    Serve as a guide and resource for district employees in their work on behalf of students.

 

Collaborating to Identify Changes in What we Do and How we Do it

1. Public Meetings - Over the course of October of 2011, the District held 12 public meetings with members of the community, including junior high and high school students, parents, faculty, principals, Food Service/Maintenance and Operations and Transportation Department staff, and members of the greater community. The meetings were by and large, extremely well-attended and demonstrated the commitment of the community to its students and their education. In total, we met with and received direct feedback from approximately 400 participants. In addition, we held several meetings with members of the Board, directors and other administrative staff within the District and conducted several site visits in addition to the Superintendent's regular weekly school visits to observe classes and see the District in action. We thank you so much for your tremendous participation and continued interest. We have heard from so many of you following these meetings and sincerely appreciate your enthusiasm and ongoing feedback. We are hard at work synthesizing what we've learned during and after theses meetings. Please check back here in the late fall for meeting highlights and summaries.

2. Surveys - Surveys are one of the opportunities for the various stakeholders of the North Syracuse Central School District to provide ongoing feedback to help shape District goals and priorities during the strategic planning process. The District released surveys in the fall of 2011 and in December of 2011. In total, we received over 1,600 responses to both strategic plan surveys we issued! The high rates of participation in both of the surveys are a testament to the overall commitment of educating every student in the community. Thank you all so much 

• Early Fall 2011 Faculty Survey - In the early Fall, the District created a Strategic Plan Faculty Survey for school-based faculty to provide the feedback that helped shape the content of the public faculty meetings. Although we only had the survey open for less than a week, there was an incredible response rate - 72% - that surprised and delighted us! Thank you again for your participation. Click here for Faculty Survey Results: Highlights

• December 2011 Community Survey - In December, the District created a Community Survey to gather feedback from members of the North Syracuse community to help shape the District's strategic vision, mission and priorities. 875 participants ranging from students to family members to community members to District staff participated in the survey. Please click here to see a summary of findings from the Winter Community Survey.

3. Steering Committee - A Strategic Plan Steering Committee, including a cross-section of representatives from all stakeholder groups, from students to teachers to principals to parents to unions, was convened in the Winter of 2012 to review drafts of the Strategic Plan and to provide feedback.

4. Additional Links - Below you will find links to additional materials such as press releases, that are relevant to the development of the North Syracuse Central School District Strategic Plan.

From Good to Great... Building on a Strong Foundation

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