Next community forum is April 9
By Shelby Stewart-Soldan
Staff Writer
ssoldan@mihomepaper.com
OXFORD TWP. — During the regular school board meeting on Jan. 28, Superintendent Dr. Tonya Milligan gave an update on the strategic planning process. The district hosted a community feedback forum in January.
“We started our forum with a video, because I wanted people to think about their ‘why’,” said Milligan. “Why are we here, why do we do what we do, why do we want a strategic plan? It’s our students, and we had an opportunity to hear their words and think about our ‘why?’”
Following the video, participants were split into groups to discuss what their top hope and aspirations were for the district. Some suggestions included student voice and student choice, opportunities for students, mentorships, and having a safe, inclusive school environment with a sense of belonging.
“After that, they had a chance to do a gallery walk and have additional conversation around draft vision, mission, and core values,” she said. “The dialogue was around ‘what do you like, what resonates with you, what do you dislike, and what is missing?’ Everybody’s voice is important, everyone’s voice has value, it’s important to hear all voices.”
A survey was also sent out for people who indicated they would like to give feedback via survey. Once all of the information is compiled, the strategic planning team will begin going through all of the feedback.
“Our next step in this process, we’ve got to roll our sleeves up, lots of work,” she said. “Start getting into that final vision, mission, and core values so that we can start moving on to the goals.”
The next community forum will be on April 9, 1-3 p.m. and 6-8 p.m. Registration for the next forum will be in March. The goal is to have a strategic plan finalized and presented to the board in June.