"Let There Be No Doubt..."

“To reach port, we must sail – sail, not tie an anchor – sail, not drift.”
- Franklin Roosevelt

The traditional American values that we hold onto with great pride are not vestiges of another generation that can only be maintained by repeating past practice; rather, they are brought forward and celebrated through continuous innovation, sound planning and a willingness to embrace change. Indeed our ingenuity combined with determination, fairness and integrity will be what gets us through these most challenging times.

At the core of our Nation’s future and the future of our community is the care and education we provide to children. This commonly expressed sentiment is heard in political circles in every corner of the country. It is expressed so often that you wonder if the message is getting through effectively; nonetheless, truer words were never spoken. As Americans, neighbors, parents and educators, we must, to the best of our collective ability, ensure the health and safety of children; that is universally clear. We must also provide children with an abundance of educational opportunities and 21st Century skills that will prepare them to go on to college and successfully earn a baccalaureate and their place in tomorrow’s workforce. Education is paramount to their future and ours. In the words of our new President, “… let there be no doubt: The future belongs to the nation that best educates its citizens.”

Additionally, let there be no doubt, that in order to accomplish our short-term and long-term education objectives we must invest a tremendous amount of time, energy and ingenuity into a continuum of strategic planning cycles for the Elwood School District that will set the course for our schools over the next several years and beyond. It is also imperative that District leadership remain focused, accountable stewards of the strategic plan.

In 2004 I encouraged the Superintendent of Schools, Dr. William Swart, and fellow Board members to initiate an organized strategic planning process in Elwood. We assembled a team of Board of Education trustees, teachers, administrators and various members of the community who came together to form the Elwood School District’s first Strategic Planning Council. We brought forward plans that would strengthen our schools at every level and made a commitment to assure the theoretical becomes reality. And, while challenges arose as they always do, we remained persistent and accomplished our key objectives. We also accomplished our objectives while holding tax increases to an average of 4.1% over the period from 2006 through our newly established budget for 2010.

Collectively, the Council reflected on the mission of our schools and composed a statement. The text can be recited and written in various ways, but the spirit of the mission is steadfast and enduring: “Elwood Public Schools serve a diverse community and value the unique skills and qualities of all our students from kindergarten through senior year. Our mission is to provide an excellent educational experience that empowers and inspires each student to succeed academically, socially and emotionally in an evolving global society. We invite the entire Elwood community to join us on this journey”.

I believe everyone agrees that education is a Journey, but some choose to focus on where we have been while others focus on where we still need to go. Elwood schools have a proud legacy of educational distinction; nevertheless, I am with those who prefer to look into the horizon enthusiastically; with the knowledge that the best days in Elwood schools are ahead of us.