District Leadership: Mission, Vision and Values

The Broad Prize Framework for School District Excellence

Mission, Vision and Values Requirements

Stakeholders share an understanding of the district's mission, vision, core values and a focus on student achievement.
Stakeholders share a commitment to the district's mission, vision, core values and high levels of student achievement.
The district's mission, vision and core values are used to drive operations and promote high levels of student achievement.

Best Practice Mission, Vision and Values Documents

Articulating Mission, Vision and Values – Long Beach Unified School District

In Long Beach Unified School District, the superintendent and district staff encourage schools to write mission statements that reflect—and build on—the mission statement of the district itself. Cabrillo High School and Mission Middle School offer two examples of how schools approach this process differently, yielding valuable results both ways.

1 – Mission Statement - District A promotional piece that describes the district’s mission, vision and values.
What to Notice Long Beach put a considerable amount of effort into developing a clear and compelling mission for the district. Notice that both the mission and the vision are crisp, forceful and positive. The “Shared Values and Beliefs” emphasizes the well-being of teachers, parents, district staff, and—especially—students. The document itself is professionally produced and aesthetically attractive.	Questions to Ask How did the district develop the mission, vision and values? Who was involved in the process? And how was a consensus reached? Who actually wrote the words? How widely does the district distribute the one-pager? Do new employees receive it as a part of orientation? Do parents and students see it on the first day of school? What kind of systems and processes has Long Beach developed to ensure that the district lives up to the lofty sentiments of the one-pager? How do board members and district executives model behaviors that map to this document? How is this document used to guide district decisions?
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2 – Mission and Values - High School A description of the goals, values, and expected outcomes of Cabrillo High School.
What to Notice The first page of this document describes the process by which Cabrillo High School develops its mission and ensures that it maps to the district-wide mission. Note that it has two groups—the Professional Learning Community and the Site Decision Making Committee—that evaluate and refine the mission. Parents, teachers and students are surveyed to assess whether the mission is working effectively to establish a strong school culture. And the school’s mix of programs is adjusted over time to better reflect the content of the mission statement. The following pages include a more detailed statement of values and expected outcomes.	Questions to Ask Which members of the school team are involved in the district-wide process of evaluating and refining the district mission statement? How do these representatives communicate district-level issues to other school stakeholders? How do the perspectives of the Professional Learning Community and the Site Decision Making Committee complement each other in the review of the mission? What process is in place to develop measurable goals that link back to the list of outcomes?
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3 – Mission by Department - Middle School An articulation of the Hill Middle School mission, as well as department-by-department mission statements.
What to Notice Hill Middle School took the mission statement process one step further, developing mission statements for each of the school’s 10 departments (including the school-wide steering committee). Note that many departments use words from the school-wide mission statement.	Questions to Ask What was the process for developing the department mission statements? Who led the process? How inclusive was it? What questions arose during the process? What are the benefits of doing department-specific mission statements? Do teachers refer back to their department missions in department meetings during the year? Do the departments set performance goals that are consistent with their mission statements?
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Communicating Values to Stakeholders – Bridgeport Public Schools

Creating a mission statement and vision is the beginning of a process whereby the district identifies and communicates its values. It is important, however, that the district also develop tools and processes that ensure district values are cultivated at the school site. Bridgeport Public Schools’ Home School Compact encourages individual stakeholders to consider their behavior in the context of broader community values and goals.

1 – Home School Compact This document outlines the behavioral commitments of teachers, parents and students.
What to Notice Bridgeport’s Home School Compact is a tool used to encourage teachers, parents and students to agree on behavioral commitments at the beginning of the school year. Note that the bullet points for each stakeholder group reflect a general set of values for all district stakeholders. The student section is age-appropriate, and the quote at the top of the page emphasizes “high academic standards” for all students. At the bottom, each stakeholder is expected to sign the document.	Questions to Ask In what context do teachers share the Home School Compact with individual students and their parents? Is there a process of discussion? What training do the teachers receive in how to use the tool? Are they required to use it? What percentage of district students and parents signs the compact each year? Does the district/school/teacher take any action when the behavioral commitments are not met? Did the district see any noticeable change in behavior or achievement after the implementation of the compact?
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District-wide Consistency of Mission – Aldine Independent School District

Every school in Aldine adopts a mission statement that is consistent with and builds off of the district’s mission, vision, values and goals. Individual schools, like Ralph Goodman Elementary, develop language that is consistent with the district‘s mission but also reflects the unique needs of the school community.

1 – District mission, vision, and core beliefs and commitments One-page mission statement for Aldine.
What to Notice The district‘s mission and vision are stated in terms of “we.” The overarching vision of producing “the nation’s best” is embodied in the mission statement, focusing on critical thinking, problem solving and responsible citizenry. The core beliefs and commitments focus on key stakeholders —including employees and parents— as well as key strategies like goal setting. Notice the specific emphasis on equal access and the elimination of the achievement gap.	Questions to Ask How did the district develop the mission statement, values and goals? Which stakeholder groups were involved, and how did the district collect community input? How is the mission statement shared with key stakeholders, like parents, students and teachers? How is it integrated into the orientation process for new employees or the new student induction process? How does the district operationalize these core beliefs and values in its policies and actions?
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2 – Ralph Goodman Elementary Mission Statement and Goals Two-page mission statement for one district school.
What to Notice Like the district’s mission statement, the mission statement for Ralph Goodman Elementary emphasizes that all students can learn, regardless of race, religion, or national origin and that students of the school are to become responsible members of society. In addition, Goodman Elementary’s goals echo the district’s core beliefs and commitments in that they refer to the importance of devoting resources to student learning and aligning faculty and staff efforts towards a common goal of student achievement. Notice that this school’s goals focus on the integral role of the faculty in carrying out the educational process.	Questions to Ask How did Ralph Goodman Elementary develop its mission statement? What was the process for involving faculty and other staff? How did the district’s mission and belief statements help guide the development of the school’s mission statement? In what areas did the school decide to distinguish itself from the district’s mission statement? How does the school translate these broad goals into measurable targets for student achievement?
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