Dear Acera Community,
We are excited to share progress on our Strategic Plan: Building to Last. This collaborative effort involved parents, students, staff, trustees, alumni, and friends of the school.
With over 30 meetings across our community, we engaged with all Acera constituencies to receive fresh input on what matters and what we should prioritize for the future. This winter multiple feedback sessions were offered for our draft plan.
Feedback from these sessions was integrated with the work of a small working group made up of trustees Jane Moulding, Diane Rosenberg and David Grayzel, members of staff, Sarah Zuckerman and Trent Ramsey, and the two of us.
This initial draft was reviewed by the full board, staff, and parents, leading to further refinement.
A good strategic plan is a road map for the future of an organization. Ideally it brings people together around key concepts and ideas and helps to clarify needs, hopes and dreams that the organization can enact. It does not include everything!
While day-to-day advancements will continuously occur, strategic planning elevates us to a long-term vision. It ensures our programs reflect innovation and keep us at the forefront of educational change. The plan focuses on six key areas:
- Gifted Learners: Acera will be a leading school for gifted learners in grades K-9, where students engage in experiences of joy and discovery attuned to their capacities, needs, and passions.
- Community: Ensure the strength of our community through building healthy relationships and effective communication lines; provide a welcoming environment for all throughout our campus.
- Teachers: Our teachers serve our students, the heart of the school; they are recruited, retained, and nurtured for their expertise, growth mindset, and living our values: openness, community, curiosity, innovation, integrity and leadership.
- Enrichment Programs: Enrichment Programs offer the Acera experience to the wider community.
- AceraEl: AceraEl inspires partnership & change in public education through a self-sustaining program. AceraEl fosters joyful, inquiry- and project-based learning beyond our walls, using evidence-based approaches piloted in our core program.
- Board of Directors: The Board of Directors, with the Head of School, will ensure the School builds on its strong foundation, stays aligned with its mission and values and moves into its next stage to create a community which is built to last.
To tackle these ambitious focus areas, we’ll be initially forming 3 working groups: 1. Gifted Learners; 2. Community; and 3. Teachers. Each group will have a clear mandate aligned with existing Acera initiatives and will define specific goals, milestones, and an action plan to achieve them by 2030.
We welcome your participation! If you possess the relevant expertise and are able to dedicate time, please express your interest by contacting Trent Ramsey at trent@aceraschool.org.
Acera’s vision keeps students at the heart of everything we do. We strive to cultivate a love of learning that propels them forward as creative thinkers and leaders. Together, we are building a school and community that will last. We look forward to keeping you informed about implementation efforts as we move forward.
All the best,
Holly Whittemore
Chair, Acera Board of Directors
Courtney Dickinson
Founder & Head of School
