Importance and evolution of our district’s mission

A mission statement communicates what we, as a district, are working to achieve. Superintendent Bocking and I recently had an exciting conversation about the importance and evolution of our district’s mission; that conversation resulted in us co-authoring this month’s Education Matters!
Our mission inspires our staff to make big and small improvements at every opportunity; it also communicates to our students and families what they can expect from being a part of our learning community. The language used in a mission statement is important as it sets our direction, and this is why so much time, student, staff and public consultation, and thought are taken when creating, reviewing and renewing our district’s mission statements
A mission is not static; it changes with time. It evolves based on our students’ needs and how we understand current public education culture. What does the history of our mission tell us?
At School District 46, we have had a significant evolution in our mission over the last twenty years. From 1997 when we stated that, “We assist students to become educated citizens and life-long learners,” to 2020 when we said that, “We support and inspire each student to experience joy and fulfilment in realizing their potential as a knowledgeable, confident, and contributing citizens in the global community.” In both mission statements, we encourage everyone – trustees, teachers, support and executive staff – to think beyond the classroom and beyond graduation for the greatest life-long success of our students.
Further significant additions to our mission are the ideas of joy and fulfillment for each student and being a contributing citizen vs an educated citizen. An environment that supports joy and fulfilment with the learning builds resilience and can be translated to countless experiences during and after each student’s time at school. Being a contributing citizen pushes us beyond the idea of teaching a body of knowledge and toward a way of active participation in our community. The evolution of our mission statement is an exciting part of our district’s work!