What else would you like us to know?
•
Refreshing
This seems to be the creation of a district-wide mission statement under which details of day-today teaching fall. It seems like it’s been a while since the district has done something like this. I
think it’s wise to have these pillars, and as a teacher I am always curious how this will look in my
classroom.
“Post-Secondary Success” well worded.
What will the roll out of the final strategic plan look like? Will it be professional development?
Curriculum adoption? How will this affect my classroom teaching?
Seemingly good focus on “post-secondary success” not just college.
Of course these are great goals for students; the goals contain much. Theres so much info here,
that it’s hard to know where to begin feedback. As a teacher, I think we are already striving for
these goals. Also, from a teacher's point of view, I am curious how this will “roll out” (P.D.?) and
what it will look like/how it will affect my classroom.
I believe in our Supt.
Good to have targets!
•
na
•
progress
•
There needs to be more of a focus on staff support.
•
?
•
it is important to support all students with a graduation plan and help them achieve their goals,
and focus should be equal on students with a vocational path as well as a college path
•
This entry represents the compiled responses from a cross-section of department members at
Admin.
•
The more resources and supports that are made available to me as the teacher, the better
equipped I am to help meet the needs of my students.
•
Please continue providing paras and support to kindergarten teachers. Having a larger teacher to
student ratio has made a huge positive impact on our students.
•
I am loving this plan and all of the working parts. It seems like everything is flowing nicely and will
all go together.
•
This was a big task and it looks good.
•
We need consistency for all children.
•
We need consistency for our students! I.e. we need more, highly-capable substitutes! Relevant
professional development is a must; no more of the same PD over and over again.
•
It would be helpful to have a timeline for implementation other than just Fall 2017
•
I'm happy that our district is working on a unified goal that emphasizes equity and not necessarily
even distribution of resources.
•
We need competitive wages so that we get more interest from people to become teachers and
increase the teacher pool. Also this will increase the substitute pool so that we don't have an
extreme shortage of subs and teachers
•
I sometimes feel the middle and high learner need more support to progress to their full potential
•
I feel teachers being hired in our district should be willing to be a part of a team. If they are not
interested in working with others, perhaps Northshore isn't the right fit for them.
•
*Classroom sizes, no matter the state mandates MUST be lowered in order to achieve success.
*Schools MUST have equitable and consistent access to student supports including, but not
limited to, counselors.
*What is NSD's plan to meet state requirements for the shift in kindergarten mentality?
1
What else would you like us to know?
•
There was not enough time allowed to complete this document thoughtfully and thoroughly.
•
We went really, really fast through this presentation, skipping many slides. I'm not sure if I know
the difference between Four Pillars and Professional Practices. My comments about Professional
Practices and Four Pillars may be interchangeable.
•
As a classroom teacher I would like you to know I find it encouraging that this is being created but
am worried it will fall flat in actual schools. How will you make sure this is streamlined across the
district?
•
I would like a better understanding if and how this applies to the Food Service Staff.
•
I get that this is important work. With all of the changes happening in the district, it may have
been wise to wait a year. Myself and many around me seem to be struggling to keep up with it all.
•
Seems like things are heading in the right direction.
•
Until we have more time to really see everything and get into working with these ideas and
strategies, I can't really comment more on it.
•
If you want kids to be successful, they need to be happy, healthy and be able to make good
decisions. It is unfortunate that Health and PE has been reduced by over 50% in Northshore
Junior Highs the last 6 years. Kids need the opportunities to learn the tools that will help make
them successful.
•
I want you to know that our ability to provide a consistently supportive environment for our
students is negatively impacted by our inability to find quality substitute teachers when a teacher
or para-educator is sick.
Also, I want you to know that we have a classroom in our school that is literally falling apart and
negatively impacting the teachers health and ability to teach in that structure (portable), yet the
district refuses to replace it.
•
How do we address skepticism among staff? "NSD is paying a lot of money to set goals. We do
this all the time and time and time again nothing ever comes of it"
•
It seems like some of the items do not have to be separate. They could be included within others.
All eighteen are worthwhile. I respect the work done thus far, and am reluctant to contact Dr. Reid
with my thoughts because of this. If you think I should reach out, feel free to let me know: Mark
Mayberry [email protected]. Thank you all for this important work!
•
Commitment across schools and grade levels to create balanced classrooms in regards to SPED
and ELL is important and often not represented in the classroom make ups.
•
NA
•
Will teachers have input on how these goals and professional practices will be supported by
district curriculum?
•
I like that it is being developed as a system and not lots of input has been given by many groups
of people.
•
This hand out was well written and easy to review.
•
Nothing
•
What's missing responses
•
This is rock-solid! Love the transparency.
•
I think that some of the goals while seeming to be good goals may not be measurable nor defined
clearly. For example, "...learning that fosters intellectual curiosity and imagination..." is difficult to
measure in many classes where there is little to no student choice.
•
Thank you for doing this.
2
What else would you like us to know?
•
Thank you for this survey opportunity!
•
We are all language teachers! There are too many ELL students for the ELL teachers to reach
effectively. ALL staff need to be trained on how to meet the unique linguistic needs of our ELLs.
These students deserve access to content in a way that is comprehensible! The training should
be required not optional if we are to have systemic change and results.
•
All teachers should have access to current and relevant curriculum for all areas we are expected
to teach. I know science changes are incoming and new materials are on the way, but many
teachers could also use or need grade-level-appropriate materials for teaching social skills, life
skills, and social studies. Right now we have Sound Discipline, and that is solid material, but far
from comprehensive to what the new goals and practices are asking.
•
I like the focus on developing students for success after high school.
•
All questions answered
•
As a district parent and teacher, I'd love students to have the opportunity to be bilingual starting in
elementary school. I believe this would help us accomplish several of the goals thru many of the
pillars.
•
I am not sure which heading it fits under but we would like more funding/staffing for the mental
health of students. It is expensive but it is important. Our students are often in crisis and we don't
know how to help them. Specifically we are not TRAINED to help with this, we can talk to them
and advise them, but we are not professionals for that kind of issue.
•
Very significant need for Mental Health Specialist in every middle and high school.
•
This reminds me of our teacher evaluation system--not in a good way!! Layers of jargon and
various categories that are impossible to keep straight. Too "messy" to be meaningful!
•
Enjoy knowing that everyone across the district in included in this training.
•
I appreciate being able to provide feedback - I feel involved in the process
•
Thank-you for getting input from staff`
Where does family responsibility come in?
Having kids at school
Teaching manners
We like the process the district is using to plan
•
We are satisfied with the pillars
•
We need more adults working with our kids in order to close the achievement and opportunity
gaps.
•
We would like social/emotional curriculum training and resources.
•
I appreciate the training and staff development to make us more effective teachers.
•
Pillar 4 appears to have three components: 1) analyzing available opportunities to produce results
and developing an understanding of their costs, 2) committing resources to pursue the most
promising opportunities, and 3) when some activities lead to results and others do not, deciding
which should receive more resources and which should be abandoned altogether.
The third component will be a challenge within the historical culture of the district.
Our strategy must be backed by a resource plan. If it is not, we don’t have a strategy.
•
nothing else at this time
•
I appreciate the amount of thought that has gone into this. Clearly, children are a priority in this
district. Thank you.
3
What else would you like us to know?
•
I'm curious of the reasoning behind this process and the timing - what are financial implications?
What is the projected impact on teachers, what is the data behind the four pillars, etc.
"Personalized Instruction" is not feasible without smaller class sizes and additional staff.
Portfolios are not something to jump into either as a requirement. Additional training and
considerations are necessary.
•
There is strong inequality with the facilities from the Westside to the Eastside. it is unfair,
inequitable and not supportive of the success of students on the Westside. Notice test scores!
•
I think we should look at the amount of homework that is given in all ages but especially high
school.
•
Very good presenters. Clear, distinct, good command. Just too much for time period.
•
Need for grouping lower level students in smaller classes more for individualized attention to
guarantee continued growth for all students!
•
Scenarios that could make the goals, pillars & practices more realistic.
•
Not enough time to process.
•
I feel like we have been aligning for years. Has our alignment work not been correct?
•
At the end of the day all this doesn't matter if teachers aren't on the same page and educated
enough to pull it off. Content - pedagogy.
•
I felt that I did not have enough time to process the information. As a result, I did not provide
much feedback.
•
I like the concept of district alignment.
•
Not enough time provided for true reflection and feedback. Conformity may lead to lack of
originality, leading to lack of creativity, true innovation, and problem solving.
•
It was very difficult to follow and understand this powerpoint presentation without the benefit of
meeting with a facilitator.
•
Lots of information. Will probably need some re-teaching. Only feel like an expert in one part.
Happy that we have a vision for alignment. Great job breaking up lots of info.
•
Be sure that within the five goals, there is an emphasis on problem solving. Problem solving
student skills are essential.
•
How are you going to measure habits for post-secondary success?
•
Seems like everything is covered
•
These are all first order changes. They do little to nothing to actually address the routine failures
of the education system's factory model. Stickiy with Carnegie Units, and externally imposed
curriculum model, and a workshop schedule ignores all the modern research on student growth
and development.
•
Keep it in students' best interests.
•
How long will it take for some of these things to become relevant in our classrooms?
•
I appreciate the collaborative effort
•
We definitely need more in place to accomplish these goals.
•
Thanks for including the whole community and staff in this plan.
•
This went too fast.
•
Every student is different and not all should be pressured to take multiple AP classes. Let's
celebrate their culture and interests and let them have a voice in what courses they'd like to take
4
What else would you like us to know?
instead of rushing them to all advanced learning.
•
Way too much, way too fast to process and provide quality input.
•
Have we given enough time to be able to process and discuss these issues?
•
Thanks for the hard work!
•
Good job so far!
•
We should establish a peer-review and feedback system. Teachers teaching teachers. The
biggest shortcoming/advantages come from good/bad teachers. Dawn is awesome BTW.
•
I appreciate how polished the presentation was.
•
So glad to have a
strategic plan, and so
glad for the careful way
that stakeholders are
being included.
•
I'd like more time to
collaborate on this with
my colleagues.
•
Great Work!
•
These comments are based on my understanding from information received at a short meeting. It
all
seems well thought out, although I need more time to collaborate with my building and deepen
my understanding to speak more in-depth to things that may be missing.
•
More social and emotional learning.
•
Thank you for the
thought and planning
that is going in to these
plans. I look forward to
moving forward together
•
Not enough time for reflection/deliberation - felt very rushed!!
•
My mother passed away recently and I have not been able to attend the sessions.
•
Someone who knows and can advocate for a student K-12. Some who can track with a student
through the transition in personal and family life because much can be gained via this trust and
insite - share this way.
•
I think having a plan and thinking and looking at the "whole" student and the district as a team
working towards successful students is amazing.
•
This is important work, that many people have clearly put a LOT of time and energy into. I am
frustrated that it is being rolled out to staff with a request to participate in a short 30 minute staff
meeting at the start of the day, when we have little or no time to read, digest, and participate
effectively in the "reality check".
•
I appreciate that all staff are allowed the opportunity to
provide feedback. I wish we could have spent more time
as a nursing group to collaborate and complete this. It was
too rushed for such important work.
•
I am very new to the school system and it’s a bit hard to comment.
I have reviewed the goals,
pillars and professional practices. The strategic plan looks
5
What else would you like us to know?
comprehensive, well thought out and more importantly
it places the student at the center.
•
Life is glorious, isn't it?
•
Thanks for all of the work everyone has done toward this important work.
•
I would love to see how this works in another district. Is there a model for this work and if so, what
does it look like in practice.
•
I felt like the "Selected Themes from the student conversations" was the most important page of
all. What stood out to me:
* Students don't feel prepared going from junior high to high school
* Students want more academic support
* Students want more arts and PE opportunities
* Students want trusting, safe relationships with staff
•
nothing
•
Goal 4 is aligned with the creative subjects in our district, and it should be a major priority to
provide access to art educators in our elementary schools. 86% of public school elementary
students have access to art specialists in our nation, and our Northshore elementary students
have no access. Allowing parent volunteers to present the limited art curriculum that is provided
does not pay professional respect to art specialists and indirectly communicates a hierarchy of
district values that are not aligned with this goal.
•
nothing
•
We need to focus more on behavior and expectations at an earlier age. Students are not
equipped when entering secondary education to learn, grow and be ready to move on.
•
Our customers are children. Let them be children. Do not rush them to compete in an adult world.
Be willing to change our systems and practices to best benefit children. Examples might be to
increase recess or free play/time, increase social/emotional learning in K-1 with less emphasis on
academic learning. Shorter classes in later grades or more fluid scheduling. More coordination
between core subjects - for example, relate math learning, reading and writing to social studies
and science subjects.
•
I have been in one other district through a strategic planning process. It is a long hard process
that isn't always seen when you come through the other side with a few key words and nice
posters. I appreciate all the thought and discussion that is happening right now so that it can be
boiled down to that 5 point poster I am sure we will see next fall! I hope that we will have these
goals available to post in every room as a consistent reminder to staff, students and parents.
•
I think our ultimate goal is to make sure each child is successful in life. Success is measured
differently for each individual and I would like each child to feel proud, confident, socially
adept, and successful in what they choose to do.
•
I'd like more time to collaborate on this with my colleagues.
•
After maybe 5 attempts, I was not able to open the document. I recall seeing the first one and
answered to the best of my recollection.
•
THANK YOU for the opportunity to be part of this development! It has been rare that
paraeducators opinions have been sought out.
•
Timely interventions to address early concerns must be developed parallel to the goals and
professional practices. It is difficult to trust a system that is not fully developed, since traditionally
the interventions have been classroom based, and therefore fall on the efforts of the individual
teachers. There must be a thoughtful progressive system of support that students can access
based on timely need.
•
Time time time-we need more time . This will not work without buy in. A 45 minute sell job is not
enough to get buy in from teachers. Good ideas as always, but just ideas until everyone is on
6
What else would you like us to know?
board. What good does it do to have brilliant unhealthy students. Let us look at the whole student.
•
We need EXCELLENT professional development -- not the sort of stuff that masquerades as P.D.
and isn't very helpful.
•
I wonder if "all student groups" acknowledges the different needs of General level, Challenge,
and Advanced Placement groups. It is my hope (as both a parent of Northshore students and an
educator) that an "equitable" education takes into account the different types of students in the
district. I am also curious if there will be more of a "career track" option for the students who aren't
looking to go to college. An earlier discussion of good apprentice programs, or other work force
options after high school would be helpful.
•
n/a
•
I would like PBIS adopted at our school
•
I like the new tone the district is setting. Please remember some still need more time for trust to
be built.
•
We need access to more support personnel like counselors.
•
I'm wondering if this is going to make any difference at all
•
doing great
•
Counselors in the schools.
More field trips and guest speakers to bring the "real world" to students. Learning shouldn't
happen in a box.
•
When we will be hearing back from the feedback we are providing. What will team do with our
response? What are next steps in the strategic process?
•
N/A
•
Nothing at this point. Thanks for all your hard work. I have always been proud to work for this
district!
•
Would really like to see more focus on Health and safety. As I noted before, without their health,
children cannot learn or grow.
•
To better understand why this process is necessary and how it will help students and teachers
and not just waste a bunch of time going through the process and checking off the steps on the
list.
•
I want to repeat again that counselors are a must in this day and age at the elementary schools.
Bullying, gender issues, test anxiety and learning disabilities to name a few continue to grow and
to make teaching more complex than ever at the elementary level. We need counselors and more
supports. Thank you for including us in this important process.
•
Curriculum is ever changing but core practices stay the same, I feel that all teachers can and
spend a lot of time getting to know what they are teaching. However this work cannot be
successful if student behavior is uncontrollable or misunderstood, I would love to have more
training on how to get students motivated to learn, as well as how to deal with difficult behavior
rather than sending them to the office or referring them.I feel that I could do much more inside the
classroom if I had strategies to help me with struggling, unmotivated students
•
I really appreciate all the hard work that went into the strategic plan. I feel like the roll out was
very poor. I wanted to spend an easy hour and a half to two hours going over the plan. Instead I
was given a rushed 45 mins prior to a full day of teaching "Standard Form of Polynomials." I feel
bad for the LJH staff members who had to present in that setting knowing full well that they
wouldn't have enough time to let us read the entire plan, much less discuss it.
•
Challenge is destroying the passion and spirit of teachers. Especially in math.
7
What else would you like us to know?
•
Counselors at the elementary school level.
•
This was rushed and should have been an afternoon meeting in order to fully understand and
engage
•
I feel that had we more time to engage with the material, for presenters to present it, and for
discussion, this feedback would be more authentic and thorough. This presentation needed an
Early Release day.
•
How are we planning to implement this across our school and district?
•
To be honest, so much information was thrown at us in a 40 minute period. There is no way I
processed enough of it to really give any valuable feedback on what feels right and what is
missing.
•
what will be done about chronic absent students? Not everyone is going to college what is wrong
with trade school? Why are we fixated on only the low end and not the middle to high end? How
can we be expected to motivate kids who truly don't care and their families are of like mind? most
of us give this job our heart and soul and it seems like more and more is being expected of us
without compensation. Why are we spending money on tech (that we weren't asked if we had a
need or use for) when we could use the money to reduce our classes by hiring more educators
and para educators & have more one on one time to help all students?
•
Pillar Two, Org. and Practices might also include the goal that staff meet together in groups of
professional practice in order to achieve "effective community-wide practices."
•
What other then teachers planing, for all other employees what apply for them ?
•
This felt rushed and there was not enough time to collaborate with staff---I think everyone is NOT
still with us. Those who have seen this info before already are way ahead...
•
This is an expensive and worthwhile exercise - I just hope this action will be taken and
implemented quickly in order to improve the educational services we provide to students.
•
I would like to see more time for teachers and para's to collaborate around the students who are
most at risk.
•
N/A
•
N/A
•
As a dual-language teacher I would like to feel like we are noticed by the district. Sometimes it
feels like we are an afterthought since we are a small part of the district. On a separate note, I
see poverty, homelessness, and adverse childhood experiences affecting many students in my
classroom on a daily basis and we are in need of support. I think this is a much bigger issue that
our country needs to address because I believe that poverty is the biggest detriment to education
but in the meantime I think we need to make sure our district does all it can to tackle this on a
small-scale level (our nurse, Deb Murphy does a fabulous job of catching at-risk families, keeping
our pantry stocked, and giving support where needed through gift cards, finding housing, clothing
drives, etc.). I also think that Dr. Reid is doing an amazing job of pulling all parts of our district
together. Her visibility and accessibility is a lovely change of pace and I think it helps the entire
district (families, staff, and students) see a cohesive district with a knowledgeable leader that truly
cares, so brava Dr. Reid!
•
Data should be both qualitative and quantitative, students are not just numbers (for making datainformed decisions)
Data-informed decisions shouldn't just be made on which parents speak the loudest or if we have
the most students in an area but which students have the greater needs or whose needs are not
being met
It would be really great to have a specific office at the district level devoted to Family
Relationships (Bellingham schools has an excellent department related to this that you should
look at, they have done amazing things with getting their community involved and involving
8
What else would you like us to know?
families from different cultural backgrounds)
•
I like the plan, but am concerned about how it is going to be implemented. I don't quite
understand how some of these things (like more PD) will be supported. I want what is best for the
kids but logistically don't understand the implementation.
•
Love to have access to more subs. for classified positions.
•
We are short of subs often and it makes our jobs more difficult.
•
Love that Classified will be included in Professional training. I was included much more often as a
Lap and I've used what I learned in the Sped job. In Sped we have not been included in a lot of
the Prof. Development. I think that this is because we need a sub when we are gone. I would
suggest more Subs for Classified positions. A lot of the time our jobs go unfilled in Sp. Ed. It
would be wonderful if subs could have a little training in Sped and the curriculum, also.
•
We are short of subs often and this needs to be addressed.
•
I would really like to see more student voice and interest driving our work, as in project based
learning, also known as "big picture" learning. According to the book, "Most Likely to Succeed"
we are currently suppose to be preparing students for jobs that haven't even been created yet.
We need a focus on creative "out-of-the-box" thinking and learning in order to prepare our kids for
those jobs that still live in the imaginations of innovators.
•
this presentation needed to be longer so that we could have had more time to group progress
•
Northshore has missed the mark for decades by ignoring diversity. Addressing it now in this
measly attempt feels FAKE and untrustworthy. The staff DO NOT reflect who they are educating
and the gap of ignorance is so glaring that I can barely take it. Please get real and attract and
HIRE MEN and Women of COLOR!!!
•
Nothing
•
I wish we were part of the initial planning step to help establish the goals and pillars as well as
this part of the system
•
I would have appreciated if this survey and meeting came at a different time than SBA testing as I
would be more invested.
•
I think across the board there needs to be less focus on "textbook" equality and more focus on
impartial learning. Focusing on getting every student on the same level by a certain time is
unreal. Focus needs to shift to reality for each student. Not every student will go to college, but
every student will need to sustain a living as an adult. With that being said school should focus on
preparation for real life. If a student flourishes by being challenged they should be pushed ahead
and not given the same options as a child who struggles with the basics. This is where Equality is
flawed. Equality mean giving the same choices to every student regardless of skill at the same
stage in life. In reality every student should be given opportunities based on ability not age or
stage of life. This means that some opportunities are not offered for some kids at the same time
but only because they are not at the level to accept those opportunities and may never reach the
same level of learning as other kids.
•
The HS students many days are so overwhelmed with the amount of homework especially the
athletes, and musicians that have away games or performances etc. We should honor their whole
student commitments not just the bookwork. I can not stress this enough especially for a student
who wants to get the 4.0 and a coach that demands everynight on the field and on the sidelines
even when they aren't playing it is heart wrenching to watch this ..the stress lack of sleep and no
compassion or tools from the school.
•
Will there be an opportunity to see this work again before it goes to the Board? I think that would
be important.
•
I think it would be prudent to consider the impact that ELs will have on the district going forward
as numbers continue to rise and to prepare for them with our goals, which it seems that we are
9
What else would you like us to know?
doing. Also to be mindful that we will want to reach out to their families to provide an education for
all in our district.
•
nothing
•
Can we get this in some other in format - maybe one sheet or poster that summarizes the
strategic plan. ?
•
I seriously love working in Northshore, I know we are constantly working towards making our
teaching practice better to engage and effect students positively.
You've seriously made a positive change in our district, your words, actions and smile motivates
us everyday.
Can we get a visual on one-sheet of paper all everything that is driving our Strategic Plan? Just
Goals & Measures, Four Pillars and Professional Practices.
•
I LOVE the direction that the district is going in. I feel that there is such a positive vibe. I feel like
teachers are being supported and that allows us to support kids better. Dr. Reid, if you are
reading this, know that I am a big fan!
•
I am a fan of Dr. Reid! It is amazing to see the progress that has happened in the District in such
a short amount of time.
•
Nothing comes to mind
•
I am overwhelmed with responsibility in this job. It is too much.
•
I don't have anything at this time.
•
nothing.
•
In another district, I taught schools that received less funding/support than others because at the
school-level they didn't have as large percentages of ELL and free/reduced as other buildings.
That said, even if the percent is small, there are always going to be individual students who need
extra support and the funding/personnel needs to be available for them even if they don't go to a
"high needs" school.
•
I would like you to know that I appreciate the focus on aligning our goals, and then setting up
structures to help this alignment be successful.
•
To implement some of the goals and measures, the addition of extra support staff will be crucial.
Counselors, school psychologists, para staff, etc. Teachers have many hats and not enough
space on their heads.
•
I appreciate all the time and effort that went into creating this document.
•
Are elementary schools going to get counselors?
•
I am very hopeful with recent developments in the leadership of our district. This document is
representative of high level of leadership. Thank you!
•
Keep up the good work!
•
I appreciate the intentionality of this strategic thinking. I advocate for increased funding by rallying
in Olympia, attending town halls, and email my representatives. As educators we work really hard
and appreciate the support from our District and School Board.
•
What's the plan for getting past the cynicism and creating real change in behavior once these
great words are agreed upon?
•
I feel like I have been given a chance to help change our future for our students and our
community through better ways of communicating and real results
10
What else would you like us to know?
•
•
The timing of this is awful. Information overload and feels rushed to share an opinion that won't
even matter in the end.
•
Higher needs schools should have more technology, full time counselors, funding for
home/school connection and vice principals(even if their student totals do not show a need on
paper), because these kiddos do not have the same access/support as more affluent school
populations do.
•
NA
•
I am wondering how the strategic plan will address issues of race and ethnicity in our teaching
and in our hiring. What will be NSD's next steps? How will we connect the encouragement of
student voice and building the capacity for understanding diverse perspectives?
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I'd love to see more students have opportunities to participate in activities/athletics, regardless of
socio-economic family status. Many students do not have the opportunities due to
communication/understanding or lack of financial ability to learn and participate in athletics
outside of school to earn a place on "cut" sports teams at school. Let's close that
achievement/opportunity gap as well as the academic learning one.
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I'd like more time to really study this. It sounds great to have the district moving in the same
direction! I love the idea of calibrating our practices.
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I would like to know how these philosophies will be put into practice. I want to understand how
goals will translate into practices and how we will measure success. As it stands, this plan feels
largely like a philosophical conversation reiterating that we all care about students and want all
students to be successful, not an actionable plan that will lead to real change.
•
This process feels disingenuous. We were told all voices will be heard and considered, we put
time and work into our thoughts on the work the strategic planning team has done, yet the pillars
were determined prior to receiving feedback from all.
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I appreciate the opportunity to provide input although I have just recently been exposed to the
hard work that's been in process.
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This is a well written document that sets all Northshore School District students and employees
on a positive and successful path from this point forward.
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It takes a whole village to raise a child. Knowing the different - teach the different
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n/a
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Without seeing the slides and no meeting, I answered what I could
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If feels good to have a set of goals/directions and know we will have discussions based on them.
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I am a cook assistant. I don't have much to do with students. I'm not an educator. I think this is
out of my wheelhouse to help with this program.
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this is exciting to see us moving in this direction.
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What will this work look like in my classroom? How can administration support be more needbased instead of simply numbers?
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Frightfully optimistic
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This process has give me so very much hope in the future of education - not only in Northshore
but across the board
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I am very excited about this! I just hope there is enough support, and continued training to help
ensure success.
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It will be interesting to see how this unfolds. I hope we are provided with proper resources to
make this work for everyone. Thank you!
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What else would you like us to know?
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I am excited for this new cohesive vision for NSD.
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Thank you for your hard work so far. It is exciting be part of this important work to realign
ourselves!
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Good job
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We often plan & don't give time for deep implementation. Give people time to learn practice,
evaluate and try again.
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Thank you for asking for everyone's input
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I love the direction being taken. After 20 years in the district focusing on the student first is critical
to where we go from here.
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I love this plan and the fact that we will have a plan in place. Thanks for your work
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Training for success and total buy in is needed.
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Behavior specialists are needed at many campuses
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Is this able to become a reality? How? When? $? Contracts? Government?
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Thank you for all your endeavor!
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These are great specific or broad ideas - great job with all the great committee work
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• Not enough time to engage in this process in a 45 minute staff meeting
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• Really challenging to complete this in a staff meeting
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• Strongly feel we need elementary counselors to meet these goals
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• We need a curriculum for social/emotional/behavior development
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• Concerned for high achievers as well as under achievers – will they be challenged enough?
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• Importance of empathy, integration, experiences
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• We need a fine arts/music coordinator who helps guide us through this process.
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• How will we build and foster Pillar #2? Will we have support in place for families? Online
communication for this would be helpful.
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• What is meant by “open to and accepting of diverse cultures and perspectives”?
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• My opinion:
o school is not all about student learning
o I believe we should offer parent education at all schools.
o I also believe we should have full-time counselors. Behavior due to divorce or other
circumstances (ADHD, anxiety, diabetes, family life, depression, allergies, and so on) it’s very
difficult for a young child to monitor him/herself.
o Children with IEPs and 504s get left behind with lofty “improvement plans.”
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• As always, “it takes a village”
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• This was a lot to process in less than 40 minutes. If I had more time, I could give more
feedback.
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The pillars are comprised of a multitude of goals within each one. Wondering how we are going to
break them down to implement them in a non-overwhelming way.
We want to educate the whole child, and not be focused on tests and number data.
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What does fidelity to the curriculum actually mean? Teaching the lessons as they are presented
in the curriculum? Does that value the needs and interests of our varying population of learners
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What else would you like us to know?
and teachers? How does that show that we are intentionally preparing our students to be
successful citizens in the 21st and 22nd centuries? Or is fidelity teaching the concepts in the
curriculum, but in the way the teacher thinks is best for his/her students? Who will monitor that
everyone is showing fidelity to the curriculum? What about the common core?
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CREATE A PLAN TO HELP WITH THE CRIPPLING MORAL AT NSD
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NSD is going through a lot of changes. I have seen a lot of effort being made to improve the
learning experience for the students. However, when Support Services gets limited by various
issues; budget cuts for supplies, procedural obstacles that receive no support, we can not then
guarantee the safety of our students health, nor can we provide a distraction free learning
environment. I have personally witnessed teachers and other staff leaving our district due to
neglect of facilities and safety. Students who literally can not focus because their classroom is
falling apart. And all the while we see a lot of money, time and effort being poured into NCHS...
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N/A
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If the district committee really wants everyone's feedback on this, then they need to allow enough
time for us to read and discuss this as a staff. A 45 minute presentation, followed by a little bit of
time to discuss one aspect of this is not enough time to get authentic feedback. It feels like the
district wants 100% "check off" rather than 100% thoughtful feedback.
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We need to look at the whole child and families. We need to have equitable programs available
across the district. Not programs that have limited enrollment at one school. At programs that do
end up being only available at limited schools there needs to be transportation available so that
any child can have access not just the ones whose parents can get them there.
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not enough time given to review a 7 page document that concerns the next 5 years much less
time to respond.
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Provided very little time to process this information, 20 minutes in a morning staff meeting. Should
have been done in one of the Wednesday afternoon SDLT or District Days. Also, is this pie-inthe-sky dreaming or realistic goals that are achievable? What kind of time table?
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Overall looks amazing! As an educator and parent I am excited for the direction this takes us in.
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"Wow!! This document is inclusive, yet not overwhelming.
I am wondering how the arts fit into this plan. How can we stress the importance of a wellrounded student?"
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All of this is fine if the student is at an accelerated level. This does nothing to help the students
that struggle with their academics. Having extra staff in the class rooms would help.
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Again, I think aligning our goals is important, but I am very concerned about how much
responsibility is being placed on the shoulders of the teachers.
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"WHAT ROLE DO THE ARTS PLAY IN THIS STRATEGIC PLAN?
This document is devoid of anything relating to the Arts and electives. There is nothing in here
that leads me to believe this district values the Arts. It seems like there is too much emphasis on
behavioral modification/support strategies and data based practices. Those things are important,
but they only represent a portion of where we should be focusing our energies. Again, if part of
the document is to communicate with and educate families and the community, I think it presents
NSD as a caring but not particularly innovative, dynamic, or creative place. "
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Thank you for the time and effort that went into giving Northshore a clear vision to work towards!
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I think there are great ideas throughout the document but I don't see enough specifics of how
these goals will be achieved.
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Good ideas on continuing and improving cultural sensitivity.
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The idea that we are all on the same page with the education for our students and providing with
a level of safety and care. We do need to care for the whole student as well as provide academic
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What else would you like us to know?
challenges. They need to feel valued and respected.
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I like thinking specifically about how other teachers, administrators and community members in
the district will work in alignment to offer the best possible education for my students that move
on
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You need to show responsible business practices, each change in operations have equal
expense where is the bang for the public buck?
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Ethical education from young students is essential to their future. This is program need add more
time to the class
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