Strategic Planning

What is your school's strategic plan for the next five years?

If your schedule is like mine, you are busy with the daily requests of teachers, staff, parents, and students. These are important interactions, yet Christian school leaders cannot take our eyes off the long-term plan for our school.

When we developed our strategic plan, we took time to consider the strengths and weaknesses of our school. I gathered feedback from teachers, staff, alumni, parents, and the School Board, and I began the process of identifying key areas for growth in the next five years.

In the end, we identified seven areas:
1. Spiritual Health
2. Financial Strength
3. Academics
4. Faculty
5. School Board
6. Extra Curricular Activities
7. Facility

We set specific goals and measures of success. It has been exciting to watch as some of these strategic plans have been accomplished. We have also revised our strategic plan to better set our target for the years ahead.

If you do not have a strategic plan for your school, I encourage you to work on one right away. We have a public version on our school's website, and we have an internal version with many more details and measures of success.

I found the process of forming our strategic plan exciting and very helpful. Since the document has been in place, I have found it very helpful for setting my priorities and guiding strategic discussions of the School Board.

Working with Your School Board -- An Introduction

The School Board members are trustees of their school. They are responsible to make sure the school remains faithful to its mission, is strong financially, and make sure the Head of School leads well.

It is vital that the Head of School and School Board have a strong relationship. The Head of School is the only employee of the board and is responsible to administer the policies established by the board.

School Boards need to think long-term. They should make decisions that will serve their grandchildren. They have to faithfully look ahead to the future and building a strong, faithful, excellent school. It is easy to get caught up in the tyranny of the urgent and the events of today, but the board has to think and plan strategically for the long-term health of the school.

The chair of the board is responsible to lead the board well and keep the board focused. The Head of School can be a great asset for the board and identify consultants who can help with board development. The Head of School can also make sure the board remains informed on current trends in education.