As a child, summer vacation was my favorite time of year. Long before the days of the internet, social media and limitless streaming entertainment, my brothers and I spent most of our waking hours playing outside. We built forts, moved large amounts of earth with army surplus shovels and rode countless miles on our bicycles.
The exception to our outdoor adventures was watching late afternoon reruns of “Looney Tunes” and “The Three Stooges” that came on after the boring soap operas were over. We were early adopters of technology because we had the Atari game console complete with three game cartridges. We may have lived in the technological Stone Age, but we made the most of our summer breaks.
As much as I loved the summer, by the time the new school year started I was eager to get back to see my friends and meet my new teachers. I remember having difficulty sleeping the night before the first day of school. The excitement was palpable.
As we prepare to begin the 2024-25 school year, we adults experience similar excitement. In the last two weeks we have conducted a successful Administrative Workshop and welcomed 83 new teachers in our New Teacher Induction. As busy as the summer is with summer nutrition and literacy programs, summer school and athletic and band practices, the excitement is amplified when teachers return this week before students fill the buildings on Aug. 8.
Preparing for the year ahead, we have a renewed sense of purpose. After more than a year of surveys and stakeholder meetings, we have an updated five-year strategic plan. At the same time, we reviewed and updated our district’s vision, mission and beliefs statements. These essential documents are the compass that directs everything we do.
A vision statement portrays a future that we aspire to attain. Our updated vision is to be “an innovative school district that strives for excellence and prepares students for success.” In many ways, we are achieving this vision today, but we must always aim for continuous improvement. Excellence and innovation must be entrenched in everything we do to prepare students to succeed.
If the vision statement describes how we aspire to be in the future, our mission statement tells what we do and how we intend to attain our vision. Our mission is to “maximize student growth and achievement by providing challenging and engaging educational experiences in safe and supportive environments.” We are dedicated to fostering an environment where every student can thrive academically, socially and emotionally. This means focusing on academic success and fostering critical thinking, creativity and resilience.
One of our strategic plan priorities is to integrate employability skills in all grade levels. We incorporate technology into our classrooms to give students tools to navigate the digital world responsibly. Additionally, we continuously expand our career and technical education programs to offer practical skills and real-world experiences that support our local workforce needs.
Pending approval at the Aug. 5 Board of Education meeting, the 2024-29 strategic plan will be available at wcsga.net. We invite you to check it out to learn more about our goals and objectives for the next five years.
Legendary football coach Vince Lombardi once said, “Perfection is not attainable, but if we chase perfection, we can catch excellence.” In a public school district with over 12,500 students and hundreds of employees, achieving excellence in every aspect of every day may seem impossible. However, if we chase excellence, we will achieve goals we never could have imagined. We are excited for what is to come.
Mike Ewton is superintendent of Whitfield County Schools.