Great Bend USD 428’s Board of Education took a fresh look at the Mission Statement, Vision Statement and goals for the next five years during a three-hour work session Monday night at the District Education Center. Sue Givens, a retired teacher and superintendent who now works for the Kansas Association of School Boards as a leadership field specialist, led the session and collected ideas that included things the district should start, things it should continue and things it should stop.

This was only a planning session, with no board action taken. Givens will prepare a summary report for Superintendent Khris Thexton and the next step will be creating a leadership team and writing a draft action plan that will come before the school board for approval.

Givens cited “The 4 Disciplines of Execution: Achieving Your Wildly Important Goals,” by Sean Covey, et. al., telling the board, “First you’ll determine your wildly important goals; Khris will recommend these. The second thing he will do is decide who’s responsible for keeping track of those goals and for making sure that the goals move forward.”

Input from parents, staff

Earlier this year, USD 428 parents and staff were sent a survey that asked how important the goals set in a previous five-year plan are to them and how well the district is achieving those goals. There were 514 responses, divided fairly equally between parents and staff. With that in mind, Givens asked the board members to imagine the future.

“Imagine it’s five years from today. You’ve met your goals. What does it look like? What do you really want to change about your district in the next five years?”

For Board President Jacquie Disque, her vision was more than would fit on one of Givens’ sticky notes: “Retention and longevity incentives for current staff and a better benefit package, insurance and pay for recruiting quality staff and teachers,” she said.

Aaron Emerson wants to expand libraries with more access to books for students, either electronically or with books they can take home.

Susan Young would like to see the district resume the practice of having grade-level meetings. For example, all of the district’s second-grade teachers could get together.

Lori Reneau wants to see more “life skills” taught to all ages. She wants professional development for staff to continue. Reneau also said a two-week pay period as opposed to the current monthly paycheck would be helpful to staff.

Chris Umphres wants to see consistency in discipline. He and other board members also want the district to expand its preschool opportunities.

Chad Burroughs had suggestions that included teaching all middle school and high school students hunter safety and cardiopulmonary resuscitation, and perhaps a four-day week.

Deanna Essmiller wants to see USD 428 ranked in the Top 10 of Kansas schools. The district needs to continue developing and building its preschool program, she added.

Some things that would have been accomplished had the last bond proposal been approved by voters were mentioned. Disque talked about “safe and secure facilities and entrances” and Emerson said the sixth graders should be moved to the middle school.

Board members agreed that they want to improve student achievement and prepare them to be responsible citizens, whatever careers they choose.

Thexton was also invited to share his vision for the future. “We have the best, well-rounded students,” he said. Administrators and board members agreed that they don’t want students to think college is their only option after high school. Thexton talked about success after high school whether the student enters college, a trade, entrepreneurship or service. “We (need to) give kids experience to find out what they want to be.”

Board members and administrators agreed that USD 428 is already doing a lot of things right. The Family Engagement Coordinators are working to help parents stay involved in their students’ education, the high school has internships and career pathway courses that don’t only focus on college-bound students, the Jobs for America’s Graduates (JAG) program has expanded and the high school graduation rate is up.

Mission statement

The district mission statement, adopted by the school board in 1996, reads: 

“Our mission is to educate and prepare all students to become responsible citizens and lifelong learners.”

This statement is clear about the mission and who it is aimed at, but lacks one element, Givens said. That is, it needs to explain how the mission will be achieved. For example, the Sweetwater County School District in Wyoming has this statement:

Mission: To provide a quality education for all students. We will accomplish this by: Making students our first priority, utilizing community partnerships, promoting professional excellence, being a school board committed to excellence in education, and provide a safe, orderly and efficient environment for learning.