One of the key tools to guide the work of the district is the Strategic Plan. The district’s Strategic Plan is developed in partnership by the Board and Superintendent. The Strategic Plan serves as a roadmap for SPS, guiding how resources and operations are organized to meet student goals. Community input is crucial to ensure the plan reflects the values and priorities of those living within the district.  

The Role of the Board and Superintendent in the Strategic Planning 

The Board is responsible for setting the Goals for the district, representing the community’s vision, and the Guardrails for how the district accomplishes the Goals, representing the community’s values. The Superintendent then translates these Goals and Guardrails into strategies and actions that result in high-quality learning experiences for students in SPS. The Board adopts the Strategic Plan. 

Strategic Planning for 2025-2030 

The current district Strategic Plan, Seattle Excellence, sunsets in 2024. The Board and Superintendent have begun the process of developing the new Strategic Plan to go into effect in fall 2025.  

The first step in developing the new Strategic Plan is Board community engagement. The Board conducted community engagement in spring 2024. The vision and values communicated in this engagement were used by the Board to develop draft Goals and Guardrails. Below is a timeline for the Strategic Plan process.  

Vision and Values 

During spring 2024, Seattle Public Schools (SPS) Board of Directors engaged the Seattle community on its vision and values for SPS students. The Board collected responses via an online survey, three open public meetings, and individual meetings with 20 different partner organizations and community groups. 

Participants were asked about what a Seattle graduate should know and be able to do, what educational equity means to them, what SPS is doing well, and what SPS could improve. Themes from the engagement include being academically prepared for college and career; social emotional competence; social justice orientation and ability to collaborate with diverse communities; equitable access to educational opportunities; high-quality teaching staff; and need for partnership with families. The full summary of the engagement themes and findings can be found here.  

Goal and Guardrail Confirmation 

Once the Board has finalized language for the draft Goals and Guardrails, the Board will reach back out to the Seattle community to confirm they accurately reflect the vision and values. Following this confirmation, the Board will approve the Goals and Guardrails  

Strategic Plan Engagement 

The Superintendent will develop the strategic plan to accomplish the Goals established by the Board, in alignment with the Guardrails. During this process, the Superintendent and staff will conduct additional community engagement.  

The Board distilled the vision and values reflected in the community engagement conducted in Spring 2024 into draft Goals and Guardrails. These drafts were then provided to the Superintendent. The Superintendent is charged with refining the language of the Goals and Guardrails to ensure they are Strategic, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Timebound (SMART) and will drive the intended change in the district. He is also tasked with developing interim metrics that the Board can monitor throughout the year and course of the Strategic Plan. These interim metrics must also be SMART and must be predictive of the topline Goals and Guardrails adopted by the Board. Setting measurable goals gives the Board a tool to evaluate progress and hold the district accountable for educating our children in alignment with state and federal law and with the priorities of the community we represent. 

At the Oct. 23, 2024, meeting, the Board received the Superintendent’s recommendations, as well as an analysis of student needs in our system. The Board and Superintendent will continue to refine the Goals and Guardrails and interim metrics to align with student needs and the community’s vision and values.