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Our Shared Vision
Every Child . . . Every Day

The vision of the Newport-Mesa Unified School District is to
provide a world-class education for every child, every day.
We will accomplish this through our dedication to:

• Providing a challenging, nurturing, and active learning environment for all our children that ensures educational success, a life-long desire to learn, and personal and civic responsibility.

• Establishing an environment in which everyone is valued and treated with dignity and respect.

• Offering continuous learning opportunities that are useful, timely, and engaging for all district employees and families.

• Forging productive school-family-community partnerships.

• Creating a collaborative organization that is open and committed to quality customer service.

Accomplishing this vision ensures that our students become responsible, ethical citizens who will make meaningful contributions to a multiethnic, global community. Our graduates will exhibit the academic, interpersonal, and technological skills required for success in higher education and in their chosen careers.

2005—2010

STRATEGIC ISSUES, GOALS AND ACTIONS

Excellence: Advancing student achievement in all areas.

Goal: Meeting the Needs of All Students
Actions:

• Expand after school and summer programs

• Expand career preparation training

• Develop plans to reach the potential of students with unique needs including English Learners, At-risk, GATE (Gifted and Talented Education) and Special Education

• Establish Family Resource Centers

• Devise opportunities for students to think critically, research and solve problems

• Incorporate multiple assessment strategies to evaluate student learning and progress

• Provide an exciting, challenging curriculum responsive to needs, learning styles and individual interests

• Ensure mastery of the grade level California adopted standards

• Ensure equal access for every child to the core curriculum

Goal: English Bridges To Opportunity
Actions:

• Expand community school concept (preschool to adult education)

• Collect more in-depth assessment data at enrollment

• Improve customer service to incoming families

• Address the needs of English Language Learners at the secondary level

Goal: Preschool Access for All
Actions:

• Ensure reliable kinder transition and articulation

• Conduct age appropriate assessments

• Expand preschool access to all children

• Expand family/student learning activities so that all children reach their highest potential

Goal: Visual and Performing Arts
Actions:

• Make the visual and performing arts an integral part of school life

• Expand coordination of district funded arts program

• Study creating a magnet arts school

• Expand course offerings in arts program

• Infuse visual and performing arts standards into core curriculum

• Expand collaborations with existing visual and performing arts organizations

• Provide additional visual and performing arts opportunities in the after school and summer school programs

Goal: Inquiry-based Science
Actions:

• Create consistency in program delivery

• Integrate science across curriculum

• Implement hands-on inquiry based science

• Ensure quality science instruction on every site

Goal: Professional Development
Actions:

• Provide training opportunities for professional growth, multicultural sensitivity, and positive customer service

• Maintain an environment of continuous “life-long” learning

• Implement sustained staff development

• Seek funding mechanisms for new initiatives

• Create a teacher training center and demonstration school

• Create manageable teacher workloads with built in planning time

• Create opportunities for staff to meet with district personnel

• Devise opportunities to reduce teacher stress

• Provide teacher training in instructional methodologies and techniques

• Develop a teacher training program that is focused on preparing teachers to interact and communicate with families

• Provide training to families about the educational process, how and why it is changing and how to support classroom instruction

• Review service demands and staffing levels annually

• Offer employees opportunities for second-language acquisition

Innovation: Redesign the way we do business for students, staff, families and the community.

Goal: High School Redesign
Actions:

• Continue to design our high schools to meet the changing needs of our students in the areas of curriculum, scheduling, environment, instruction and community involvement

Goal: Life Skills
Actions:

• Expand behavior standards for the classroom and school environment (i.e. positive behavior system and 40 Developmental Assets)

• Strive to eliminate racism and prejudice in our schools

• Prepare students to thrive in a diverse society

• Promote dignity, self-esteem and respect

• Establish a Task Force to develop a service learning program

• Create a Fitness, Nutrition and Health Advisory Council and coordinate services

• Continue to collaborate with outside agencies to promote healthy lifestyles for students and staff

21st Century Skills: Using current technologies, prepare students and staff to access, manage, integrate, evaluate and create information.

Goal: Technological Literacy
Actions:

• Integrate technology tools into all facets of the curriculum

• Provide equity and access for students and families

• Implement greater access to online data and resources

• Establish opportunities for all teachers, staff and administrators to acquire technology skills

Communication and Collaboration: Getting our message out to internal and external stakeholders and working with other stakeholders in the community to raise awareness of our issues.

Goal: Improved Communications
Actions:

• Integrate and implement the Family Friendly Schools Program in a manner that ensures advocacy and language that is family friendly

• Reach out to the media and community

• Produce proactive outreach materials

• Create user friendly district and school websites

• Establish a network of site based communication liaisons

• Create district, staff and site level list-serve’s and message board

• Use a common language-avoid acronyms

• Reward exceptional customer service

• Develop a process and attitude that ensures that employees at every level of the organization are equipped with the skills and strategies to create consistently positive service interactions

• Continue a district-wide customer service training program that builds appropriate service skill levels of each member of the district staff

• Develop a community and employee input program

• Establish processes for open and honest communication with all staff and community members

Goal: Effective Collaborations
Actions:

• Establish a district business collaborative to fund “Partners in Education”

• Establish a community non-profit collaborative

Facilities and Infrastructure: Preparing the buildings, services and connectivity needed for the functioning of an organization in the 21st Century.

Goal: Facilities for the 21st Century
Actions:

• Maintain and improve the facilities and infrastructure of all NMUSD properties with pride and respect

• Study parking and drop-off areas across the district

• Implement greater security – physical and data

• Study the options of 7-12 campuses

• Study and make recommendations for the completion of all priorities under Measure A

• Create facilities to provide equivalent opportunities in athletics, visual and performing arts and science laboratories

Goal: Technology Infrastructure
Actions:

• Provide timely and effective technical support

• Standardize operating systems, hardware and software

• Create a formal process to analyze proposed programs

• Expand and strengthen the IT (Information Technology) Infrastructure

Fundamental to our vision is our commitment to . . .

• Always make decisions based on the best interests of our children.

• Channel all our resources (people, money, facilities, time, and energy) to support our beliefs and shared vision.

• Prioritize existing funding and acquire new funding sources to make our vision a reality.

• Be sensitive and responsive to the changing demographics of our community.

• Hold ourselves accountable to the highest standards of performance and service which improve and support student learning.

• Maintaining and improving the facilities and infrastructure of all NMUSD properties with pride and respect.

WE BELIEVE . . .

our first responsibility is to provide a quality educational program that meets the needs of all students in the district.

that we teach the whole child. We expect academic achievement, personal responsibility, honesty, cultural sensitivity, and respect for people, property, and the environment.

that all children can learn best in a safe, clean, caring, and aesthetically pleasing environment.

that when we come together as one community, we are enriched by our cultural diversity.

that people are our most important resource and should be treated with respect and dignity.

that we need families as partners with the school and district in sharing ideas and giving input to major decisions affecting their children’s education.

that when students’ families are engaged in their learning, their student will be engaged in learning.

that we have a responsibility to demonstrate the effective and wise use of money and resources.

that we serve our students and our community best when we work together as a team.

 

To achieve individual success, the Newport-Mesa Unified School District will demonstrate continuous
improvement in . . .

• Student Achievement

• Attendance Rates

• Graduation Rates

• Dropout Rates

• Family/Student/Staff/Community Satisfaction

• Responsiveness to those we serve

• Involvement of Stakeholders

• Family Involvement

• Honoring Diversity

• Budget Alignment

This Strategic Plan was developed by families, community members, teachers, classified staff, administrators, business people, students and board members reflecting the diverse cultures and values of the Newport-Mesa Unified School District.