The Coronado School District has kicked off a year-long Strategic Visioning process to ensure success for its students leading to graduation and beyond.
San Diego County Office of Education representatives on Oct. 3 led a program called Portrait of a Graduate that included the governing board and district staff, as well as some community members. It includes planning for up to five years.
According to the district’s Strategic Visioning 2023-2024 document and community invitation form, the plan will help CUSD with instructional, financial, and staffing decisions for the “graduates we want Coronado students to become over the next 12–15 years of formal education.”
County executive leadership coaches Anne Worrall, Kristine Shipman-Smith and mathematics coordinator Mindy Shacklett work with districts across greater San Diego.
3 Horizon Model
The trainers led what’s called a 3 Horizon Model—an introspective exercise reflecting on current work, possible changes, and a 15-20 year future landscape for CUSD.
It was followed by “Personas and Scenarios,” and included discussions surrounding the potential for learning journeys, core values, anticipated community engagement, strategic planning, roles and responsibilities, and a closing orientation debrief.
According to district records, the cost for Portrait of a Graduate and the associated work is $97,583.
The training team, which also includes world languages coordinator Eva Pando-Solis, from October 2022 and May 2023 worked with Mountain Empire Unified School District to create their Portrait of A Graduate in the form of a brochure available in English and Spanish.
The Oceanside and Vista school districts also have completed the portraits program and are in the process of initial implementation, according to records shared with The Coronado News.
We know that public schools have to evolve to meet the changing needs of our students as they transition to life beyond CUSD.”
-Superintendent Karl Mueller.
“We know that public schools have to evolve to meet the changing needs of our students as they transition to life beyond CUSD,” said Superintendent Karl Mueller. “We want to make sure that all of our graduates have opportunities to attend a university and or pursue their individual passions and interests.”
Four-hour workshop
The four-hour workshop unfolded in the form of a special school board meeting with public comment available for one item: “Orientation to Strategic Visioning Process and Activities for Board of Education and Core Team.”
One parent requested that the board extend forms of special meeting notices including the CUSD app and asked for clarification regarding the district’s needs for the portrait of a graduate.
“We are now entering into a place where in the next two or three years we’re going to have additional resources in this district,” said Mueller. “We want to make purposeful decisions with input from our constituents and, most important, our students.”
The group of close to 20 attendees were encouraged to stay for the entirety of the meeting, and most stayed through the evening, while others left upon completion of a designated activity.
Discussions and responses from attendees were gathered on multiple large posters, and walkthroughs occurred through the meeting.
Workshop follows Student Summit
The leadership team workshop followed a Student Summit on Sept. 26, during which 5th to 12th grade students shared their experiences and feedback, providing insight on how to prepare future Coronado schools graduates.
“The community and stakeholder engagement is really critical,” said Shipman-Smith, noting 150 students took part in the event last month. “We try to help them feel welcomed and invited into that space so that we can truly say at the end this process was reflective of all voices and the same goes for community and stakeholder engagement.”
Worrall said the Core Team of administrators and support staff from each CUSD school site has met regularly in the past two months to organize the Student Summit and continue to meet with those interested in upcoming interviews and meetings.
Next steps
In terms of next steps, the coaching team said they will continue with interviews, and start assembling the Guiding Coalition of CUSD certificated and classified staff, students and families, and Coronado community members.
The first ones are set for Oct. 20 and 21, followed by Guiding Coalition Convening No. 2 on Dec. 15 and 16, and Guiding Coalition Convening No. 3 on March 1 and 2, 2024.
Members of the community interested in providing input and/or participating can complete a District Google Form.
“These data points will be used and taken into consideration, but these activities are really designed for all of us in this room to see how these experiences will be facilitated in the larger group,” Mueller said. “We’re not landing anywhere tonight, these aren’t absolutes, these aren’t finished products. I just want to make sure that that’s pretty clear.”
For more information regarding Portrait of A Graduate, visit the Coronado Unified School District website.
