IN Brentwood-Baldwin-Whitehall Fall 2016

Brentwood Borough School District SUPERINTENDENT’S M E S S A G E S C HOO L D IS TRI C T NE WS rentwood Borough BY DR . AMY M. BURCH If you are new to the district, welcome. If you are returning for another year, welcome back, we missed you. As we transition to a new school year the saying, “what gets measured, gets done”, comes to mind and certainly applies to education. In order to determine whether or not the district is improving we must identify our priorities and establish a system of measurement. Comprehensive Plan- The updated comprehensive plan took effect July 1, 2016. Below are the components that are outlined throughout the plan. At the end of each year, the district will evaluate the progress on achieving the five strategic goals. Five District Beliefs • A safe and secure learning environment is necessary for student achievement. • Students are the center of the educational process. • Quality teachers and curricula are the foundations of a quality education. • Schools develop the skills for lifelong learning. • Students have rights but they also have responsibilities. Five Strategic Goals • Encourage families to explore all educational avenues including opportunities at Steel Center for our ninth- twelfth grade students. • Establish a system to ensure implementation of consistent instructional strategies across all classrooms in each school • Establish a system that ensures all staff members in every school use standards aligned assessments to monitor student achievement and adjust instructional practices • Establish a system that ensures all staff members in every school the opportunity to utilize educational technology and technology integration into the core curriculum • Establish a system that ensures maximum efficiency procedures for accounting, reporting, business, purchasing, and all other areas of fiscal management. District Compass - In 2014, the District Compass was shared with all stakeholders. It serves as our visual reminder of why and how 68 Brentwood-Baldwin-Whitehall decisions are made. With the updated comprehensive plan comes the opportunity for the district to fine tune our mission and vision statements. • Mission - It is the mission of the Brentwood Borough School District to develop in all students the skills to think critically by reasoning, creating, connecting, and transforming in order to meet the challenges of the 21st century and achieve to their fullest potential as ethical citizens. • Vision - It is the vision of the Brentwood Borough School District for all students to graduate prepared to meet the challenges of a complex society through lifelong learning skills that will allow them to be successful in college, career, and their individual life goals. Four Student Expectations Reason Brentwood students can use facts, evidence, concepts, assumptions, inferences, implications, and point of view to produce informed and justified conclusions. Create Brentwood students can use knowledge and understanding to create new ways of thinking in order to produce innovative solutions to problems. Connect Brentwood students can make connections between various concepts and situations to construct deeper understandings in order to make sense of the world. Transform Brentwood students can transform content skills and ideas through the use of 21st century tools. I look forward to collaborating with the students, parents, community, professional staff, administrators, and support staff to continue to build on the foundation we laid in 2014.

IN Brentwood-Baldwin-Whitehall Fall 2016 | Page 70