KPS Strategic Plan - For Excellence and Equity in Education

 

An Overview

The Kentwood Public Schools Strategic Plan for Excellence and Equity in Education, adopted in 2023, outlines the guidelines for the next three to five years for our district. The creation of this plan was a collaborative effort between district leadership and staff, members of the KPS Board of Education, parents, students, and community members. The plan prioritizes district work and will be used to guide decisions, strategies, and funding. The plan is student-focused, guided by Student Vision Statements, and also includes four goal areas, each aimed to ensure a comprehensive process is in place to support the needs and success of our students.

Student Vision Statements

  • I am cared for, supported, and heard.
  • I am empowered to influence my community.
  • I am motivated to learn and achieve challenging and new ideas.
  • I see myself and others in my learning.
  • I know we all belong and are valued.

Goal Areas and Cross-Cutting Themes

Establish, implement and uphold a common standard of  excellence for school climate and instruction.

Initiative 1.1: Implement evidence-based instructional practices that are culturally relevant and aligned with high standards of excellence.

Success Indicators (3-5 Years):

  • Establish a structure to conduct ongoing curriculum audits and adopt evidence-based tools, resources and practices for academics and social-emotional learning.

  • Develop coherent instructional scope and sequence and pacing guides to maximize student learning and engagement across all grades.

  • Adopt and train staff in balanced assessment systems.

Initiative 1.2:  Empower Educators through a professional learning community (PLC) model to increase student achievement.

Success Indicators (3-5 Years):

  • Provide research-based professional development on PLC models for all instructional staff.

Initiative 1.3:  Create a classroom culture framework that cultivates high achievement and belonging.

Success Indicators (3-5 Years):

  • Establish guidelines for district and building leadership roles – including principals, deans, and directors.

  • Develop an instructional coaching model that incorporates evidence-based academic and social-emotional learning best practices.

  • Establish district-wide standards for classroom culture and instruction that prioritize innovation, engagement, relevance, and student voice and choice.

  • Create a structure that gives students multiple pathways to demonstrate competency.

Initiative 1.4:  Expand a multi-tiered system of supports (MTSS) framework in all schools.

Success Indicators (3-5 Years):

  • Enhance the current MTSS team structure, so that schools may collaboratively use data to support the academic and social-emotional needs of each student.

Celebrate diversity, while elevating equity of opportunities and outcomes for each student.

Initiative 2.1: Ensure equitable access to resources and opportunities in each school building.

Success Indicators (3-5 Years):

  • Conduct a comprehensive study of physical building needs to accommodate the district's growing and diverse student population.

  • Establish parameters and revise protocols to maximize federal, state, and local grant dollars across each school.

Initiative 2.2Establish a district-wide strategy to ensure equitable opportunities and outcomes for historically under-resourced and special populations. 

Success Indicators (3-5 Years):

  • Conduct an equity review of district program offerings, with a focus on multilingual learners, students with disabilities, and students of color.

  • Provide increased, high-quality early childhood offerings for under-resourced families.

Establish, implement and uphold a common standard of excellence for school climate and instruction.

Initiative 3.1: Ensure safe, welcoming school communities.

Success Indicators (3-5 Years):

  • Unify a school culture and climate model that incorporates Positive Behavioral Interventions and Support (PBIS), Restorative Practices, Capturing Kids' Hearts, and social-emotional learning.

  • Implement district-wide protocols for positive relationships, data-driven decision-making, threat assessment, and options-based crisis response.

Initiative 3.2:  Identify and leverage community partnerships to assist broader student wellness needs.

Success Indicators (3-5 Years):

  • Develop guidelines for new and existing community partnerships in order to best leverage resources on behalf of students.

Recruit and retain high impact staff that uphold the values of KPS - in particular staff that are reflective of community diversity.

Initiative 4.1: Establish partnerships with postsecondary institutions, government, and community-based organizations to create career pathways for diverse candidates.

Success Indicators (3-5 Years):

  • Launch a "grow your own" initiative, a pathway to alternative teacher certification for support staff.

  • Establish partnerships with historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs) and other institutes of higher education, as well as nonprofit and government organizations, to create a talent pipeline.

Initiative 4.2:  Develop an intentional induction and mentorship program.

Success Indicators (3-5 Years):

  • Establish a formal induction and mentorship initiative to provide ongoing support to retain high-impact educators.

Initiative 4.3:  Revise hiring processes to remove bias, assess cultural competencies, and use multiple measures to evaluate qualifications.

Success Indicators (3-5 Years):

  • Deploy evidence-based policies and protocols that include an interview rubric and selection plan across the district.

 Cross-Cutting Themes: These themes surfaced repeatedly during input  from various stakeholder groups. Their importance cuts across all goal areas and plays a role in work we do across the board. The themes are present in the thinking and planning for all decisions we make to positively impact our students.

  • Meaningful Learning
    • Make learning meaningful and accessible for all students through innovation and "real world" experiences.
  • Communications and Engagement
    • ​​​​​​​Ensure students, families, and staff benefit from effective communication, ongoing outreach, and engagement opportunities.

Tracking Progress

All stakeholders in our community, that includes students, parents, staff, and valued partners, played an  important role in the creation of our strategic plan. Now that implementation is underway, we will continue to partner with each stakeholder group throughout this process, to obtain feedback, and also to provide information on how our plan is unfolding. Please click this link to track our progress.

KPS STRATEGIC PLAN DASHBOARD 

Resources 

For more information on the Kentwood Public Schools Strategic Plan for Excellence and Equity in Education, please click on this link.

KPS Strategic Plan Resources