Butler District 53 launches strategic planning process

Butler District 53 launches strategic planning process

Butler School District 53 is launching a strategic planning process this fall and would like to invite the community to participate. The feedback will be critical in helping guide the future direction of the school district and inform the vision for the education of all current and future Butler District 53 children.

All of District 53 stakeholders, including parents, teachers, administrators, staff, students and community residents will be involved in developing the Strategic Plan.

“The involvement of the community and all of our stakeholders is invaluable,” said Superintendent Dr. Heidi Wennstrom. “Incorporating the input from everyone’s thinking reflects the core values of Butler School District 53,” she said.

Community members can participate in two ways. They can attend one of the two focus groups in December and/or participate in an online survey. The focus groups will be held on:

  • 9:00 - 10:30 a.m. Monday, Dec. 4
  • 6:00 - 7:30 p.m.  Tuesday, Dec. 5

Both sessions will be held at Butler Junior High School, 2801 York Rd. Oak Brook. RSVP to Vickie Galvin at vgalvin@butler53.com with the number of persons attending and the preferred date.

The online survey will be open on Nov. 27 and continue through Dec. 11. It can be accessed through this link www.ecrasurvey.com/butler53. The link will take participants to a third-party website and all responses will remain confidential.

The data collected from these focus groups and community surveys as well as through interviews and focus groups of staff, parents and students, along with the District’s mission statement, vision statement and guiding principles will be analyzed to determine findings, goals and objectives. A draft of the Strategic Plan will be presented to the Board of Education in February with adoption anticipated in March 2018. The report will be released to the public at that time.

“This is a high performing District and a Strategic Plan is critical in helping us continue to improve performance, quality and community/parent satisfaction,” said Wennstrom. “These are critical times in schools, from shrinking revenues, increased standards and accountability, and changing technology and it is essential to be able to respond to shifting demands through a rigorous, disciplined process that involves all of our stakeholders,” she said.

The Board of Education on Oct. 17 approved leading education consultants Hazard, Young and Attea and Associates (HYA), of Rosemont, as facilitators. HYA has a 35-year history of partnering with school districts to conduct strategic planning and executive searches.

“Our children are our community’s most valuable resource and we look forward to working with the community in determining the future together,” she said.

Click here to take the survey

Please note that the survey will remain open until December 11th.