The SBISD Insider

Community Meetings Plant Seeds for Strategic Plan

The Tuesday, Dec. 1, community meeting at Northbrook High School concluded a whirlwind schedule of meetings wrapped around the Thanksgiving holiday.

District parents and staff at the Northbrook meeting on Dec. 1.

The meetings, held on different nights at Spring Woods, Memorial, Stratford and Northbrook high schools, were designed to both deliver findings from Superintendent Dr. Scott Muri’s “Look, Listen, Learn” tour, and to open up dialogue and input for the district’s Strategic Planning Committee.

Dr. Muri, who started as superintendent on July 1, spent a large part of his first 90 days on the job conducting “Look, Listen, Learn” sessions with multiple stakeholder groups, identifying SBISD’s strengths and areas of improvement. While the district’s strengths are overwhelmingly a supportive community and dedicated employees, some significant challenges were also identified.

Dr. Scott Muri posting work at the Stratford meeting on Nov. 30.

The whirlwind community meeting schedule stems from an urgency to tackle those challenges in a new strategic plan, undergirded by a District of Innovation distinction. Authorized by HB 1842, enacted by the Texas Legislature earlier this year, a District of Innovation can have many state requirements waived, allowing more creative solutions to challenges.

A Strategic Planning Committee, composed of some 90 community members, parents, teachers, principals, students and staff, met once in November and will meet again on Dec. 10, then again in January and February of next year. The committee will put together a Local Innovation Plan (LIP), which must be publicly posted for 30 days before approved by both the District Improvement Team (DIT) and the Board of Trustees, presumably in March of 2016.

The district remains committed to its T-2-4 goal – doubling the number of students completing a technical certificate, military training, two-year degree or four-year degree – and will design a strategic plan that works towards that goal.

Challenges from Dr. Muri’s Look, Listen, Learn reports have been lumped into broader themes that include Learning Ecosystems, Extraordinary People and Customized Supports, all undergirded by foundation support.

LOOK, LISTEN, LEARN FINDINGS

Strengths

Supportive Community

Dedicated Employees

Challenges

Student Performance and Instruction

T-2-4

English Language Learners (ELL)

Data and Accountability

Parental Engagement

Leadership

Communication and Collaboration

Organizational Clarity

Talent

Finances and Resources

For more information, please go to www.springbranchisd.com/innovation.