Four Guiding Principles Approved by School Board

The Board of Education unanimously approved a set of guiding principles, meant to provide a uniform long-term set of goals by which to measure changes in curriculum and development, at their meeting Monday.

Superintendent Dr. Michael LaSusa introduced four guiding principles. He said the principles do not necessarily represent a change from past policies.

"The hope is that some of these broad beliefs that we have as a school district ... will inform some of the more specific plans and goals that we have on a year-to-year basis," LaSusa said.

The principles include a preamble which implies a goal of operating the district as a "premier educational institution."

The complete text of the principles are:

The School District of the Chathams, recognizing that premier educational institutions must examine their current practices in contexts both within and beyond their communities, strives to:

• Equip each of our students with the competencies and awareness to succeed academically, professionally, and socio-emotionally in a global environment.
• Align our practices and policies with current, evidence-based research in the fields of learning, child development, and education.
• Ensure that there is equity of opportunity for each student to access all curricular and extra-curricular programs.
• Promote professional growth among our staff through ongoing collaboration, feedback and self-reflection.

 

LaSusa said the principles were discussed and revised among several of the board's committees over "the past couple of months" before they were ready for formal introduction and approval.

The principles, he said, are "flexible" and can "evolve over time, if we want to focus on different areas."

LaSusa said the principles will be posted to the district's website.