Strategic Plan Community Engagement Expansion

Kent School District’s Strategic Plan will be updated to center each goal area on the key objectives, strategies, and measures that reflect the current needs of our students and the future needs of our system. The strategic planning process is a collaborative effort involving stakeholders from across the district, including teachers, staff, administrators, parents, and community members. We believe that by working together, we can create a shared vision for the future of our district and develop a plan to achieve it.

In February, we opened a ThoughtExchange to ask our community how they would like to be informed and engaged throughout the process. 27 thoughts shared and rated 368 times by 66 students, family members, staff, and community members highlighted the importance of:

• Intentional outreach and engagement of students.
• Community involvement throughout the development process.
• Participation of associate superintendents in community events and school visits.

Planning committee members used this feedback to prioritize, refine, and add to planned community engagement activities.

• Periodic ThoughtExchange opportunities to gather feedback from a broad range of stakeholders. This activity would primarily be used to identify themes and trends on specific strategic plan concepts.
• Form one planning committee for each goal area, for a total of four planning committees, that are approximately 10-15 members comprised of students, families, community members, School Board directors, and staff. Committee members will be primarily responsible for identifying the objectives, strategies and measures within each goal area with input and feedback from stakeholders.
• Hold community conversation events on a rotating schedule of Tuesday and Thursday evenings, and Saturday mornings, from March through May. This activity provides regularly occurring opportunities for any stakeholder to provide input and feedback to the planning team. Events are being hosted in partnership with community-based organizations and local businesses to provide childcare, food, and interpreters at no cost.
  • NEW! Associate superintendents will attend these events to directly engage in conversation with our families and community.
• Post meeting notes and action taken from each planning committee meeting on the District’s website. Planning committees will begin meeting in late March.
• Establish an email mailing list and send periodic progress updates and meeting notes to subscribers.
• Coordinate opportunities for committee members to visit schools to engage students and staff directly to hear their ideas on strategic plan concepts and/or draft content.
  • NEW! Associate superintendents will attend these events to directly engage in conversation with our students and staff.
• NEW! Invite students and families to share video feedback from anywhere, anytime using Flipgrid.
• NEW! Visit schools and engage students in lunchroom activities to hear their ideas and feedback.

We will continue collecting input from multiple lenses and diverse perspectives throughout the strategic planning process. Please visit our website, attend a community conversation, sign up for emails, and stay tuned for continuous opportunities to get involved over the next several months.