State the mission, stay the course | The Forum for Education and ...

by Ayla Gavins,?Principal at Mission Hill K-8 School, A Boston Public Pilot School in Boston, MA and Sizer Fellow with The Forum for Education and Democracy

I've visited more than a hundred schools in the course of my professional life, in the U.S.A. and abroad. ?Although all were unique, very few of those schools had their very own, thriving cultures of learning. ?Most had a mission statement of some sort posted on a wall or printed in a handbook. ?Those brief statements, however, were usually non-specific and rarely reflected the life of the school. ?

If a mission statement is to be taken seriously as a guide to the beliefs and practices of an institution, then each person within the institution must be aware of its principles. ?The mission statement in a school should inform administrative decisions and come alive in teaching, learning, assessment, hiring, communications, expectations for students and adults, and the physical environment.

What does it take for a school's mission statement to come alive, to act as a daily influence on all aspects of life within the school? ?It takes a common awareness, effort and understanding on the part of all those involved--administration, staff, students and families. ?This requires planned opportunities for people to talk through their interpretations of the statement, and define the role each member of the school community plays to articulate its purpose. ?It requires time for staff to think through implementation of the statement, time for both reflection and action planning. ?

Questions inevitably need to be worked out. ?Does everyone's voice have equal authority? ?Will an individual's strength, experience or expertise--regardless of title--be considered when a group is working on an important issue? ?How are decisions reached? ?These and other procedural questions need to be addressed and re-addressed annually. ?

The life of the mission statement?is palpable at Mission Hill School. ?Its intention is to create a learning community that practices "democratic habits," preserves a commitment to "diversity, equity and mutual respect," and graduates intellectually, academically and artistically accomplished students. Mission Hill works to develop "youngsters who can live productive, socially useful and personally satisfying lives while also respecting the rights of others." ?

How and where would a visitor to the school see the influence of the mission statement in practice? ?To begin with, ours is an environment that emphasizes creativity and the arts. ?"Democracy requires citizens who are themselves artists and inventors," ?says our statement. ?Art and places to make art are visible throughout our school. ?Original and unique samples of children's imaginative work are on display. ?Student work covers the art room walls. ?Large work tables and art and craft supplies are accessible and available for new projects. ?

Entering a classroom, the visitor might see students working individually or in groups on projects of their own choosing. ?Students might be creating a cookbook of original pizza recipes, building a small, battery-driven 4-wheeled vehicle, or designing a dollhouse. ?In another room, a visitor might encounter a spirited book discussion or a lively political debate with students listening to each other, standing up for their own views and perhaps respectfully disagreeing.

If the visitor happened in on a faculty meeting, he or she would have a hard time identifying the administrative head, who would be seated among faculty members, listening and taking notes. ?A teacher might chair the meeting. ?At Mission Hill, everyone has a voice and we make decisions together. ?Where there is disagreement, time is spent talking it through. ?Teachers at Mission Hill participate in hiring and firing, planning the curriculum, scheduling and institutional problem-solving. ?Democracy in action.

That is not to say we succeed in living up to our mission statement 100% of the time. ?Our school community is usually aware of where and when inconsistencies occur. ?These are discussed and followed up on. ?The originial vision for the school is kept in sight, quite literally--on the walls, in newsletter references, in other school publications-- and kept in mind through verbal reference and discussion. ?The mission statement is an active document and it keeps the school from straying off course. ?

Schools under pressure from external forces as well as pressure from within may benefit from revisiting their mission statements. ?Simply having everyone read and interpret the statement is a good place to start. Finding common meaning and purpose is well worth the investment of the resources that have likely been there all along.

Source: http://www.forumforeducation.org/blog/state-mission-stay-course

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