Mission Review is intimidating and exciting all at the same time. Will it be an enormous expenditure of time resulting in nothing better or even worse? Will it be an energizing, revelatory conversation that moves the school forward? Why would you want to do it?
CSM can help you do this important task with a minimum of fuss as an online service (no travelling expenses!). What does it look like?
The school provides three to five people who will participate with authority. This typically includes the Principal, a teacher/staff member with over 20 years of experience at the school, a volunteer with the same longevity.
The whole process typically takes three weeks. Your work includes five meetings and provision of any materials requested as well as the hosting of a common document e.g. googledocs. All meetings last from 60-90 minutes. 60 minutes is the minimum and 90 is the maximum allowed. The CSM Consultant facilitates the conversations.
DAY ONE
Step One: CSM reads the website, your handbooks, your current Strategic Plan and latest Accreditation Report, and the last five sets of Board minutes.
DAY TWO
Step Two: Meeting One: begins the conversation. CSM Consultant reflects on findings so far. The group identifies key ideas that inform who the school is. The common document begins with these ideas.
Time for prayer and reflection of 48 hours.
DAY FIVE
Step Three: Meeting Two: identification of key vocabulary that epitomizes the school’s identity; connection to the school’s program / mission delivery. The common document is extended.
Time for prayer and reflection of 48 hours.
DAY EIGHT
Step Four: Meeting Three: from the previous conversations, each person articulates their idea of the mission statement. Commonalities are identified. Dissonance is embraced. A common framework emerges.
Time for prayer and reflection of 48 hours.
DAY ELEVEN
Step Five: Meeting Four: The common framework leads to a final version that is wordsmithed and critiqued. The group has agreement not just about the words but about the thinking behind the words.
Time for prayer and reflection of 48 hours.
DAY FOURTEEN
Step Six: Final edits and thinking.
The new / revised Mission Statement is taken to the Board for discussion and approval.
The benefits from a Mission Review should be both immediate and long-lasting.
Immediate:
Long-lasting:
One school found unity and developed a really healthy culture after several years of fragmentation. While it had always done well, following mission renewal, it improved its enrollment and student outcomes.
As always with CSM, we charge according to your own school’s tuition so that everyone can afford it. Look at your average K-12 tuition and we charge accordingly.
For this service, the cost is .4 tuition (.5 non-member)
If you are not a member, become a member first and get access to all of our teaching for free and for significant member savings on everything else. Click here
Subscribe to our newsletter ‘Entheos’