The New Strategic Plan Is an Opportunity for Shared Success

As the district begins rolling out its new 2018-21 Strategic Plan, it’s important for everyone in CHCCS - staff, students, families and community members - to realize we all have an integral part in it.  When we began the planning process, I wanted to make sure we have a role for everyone, as challenging everyone to be a part of the Strategic Plan will ensure its success.  I wanted it to be more than big ideas on paper, I want our Strategic Plan to be an opportunity.

Our focus is simple:  empower, inspire and engage.  We built everything around these words.   Everyone in CHCCS can do each of these things every day.  When we work towards empowering, inspiring and engaging, there should be no limits and no obstacles.

The four areas of our plan - Student Success, Employee Experience, Family and Community Engagement, and Organizational Effectiveness - encompass the areas CHCCS navigates every day, all year long.  Each of these affect every school district’s main objective - the education of students.

Please watch for more information as we get closer to the beginning of the 2018-19 school year.  We will share more than just the main goals of this Strategic Plan - we’ll also share our subgoals and objectives.  As you learn more about the plan, you’ll begin to see this is a district-wide vision.  It’s more than just a single-focus.  It’s more than test scores.  It’s more than one segment of our community.  It is multi-layered, looking at every piece that goes into a student’s day.

It needs more than just the buy-in of district administrators and some educators.  The Strategic Plan needs you - all of CHCCS - to make it effective.  I’m counting on each of you to figure out what you can do to ensure each student and adult is empowered, inspired and engaged.

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Even When We Don’t Try, Educators are Always Engaged Learners

On the last day of school, if someone had asked, “What are you going to do to engage in learning over the summer,” the answer they received may not have been polite.  We know our business can be mentally and physically exhausting.  In truth, in the back of our minds, we all have a plan to continue learning during the summer.  We set aside books to read during the few quiet summertime moments we have.  We research how we’re going to set up our classroom in August.  We plan on all the ways we’re going to stay in touch with other educators.  We are writing our curriculum, participating in professional learning opportunities, researching best practices and reviewing data.  You can take the teacher out of the classroom, but you can’t stop him/her from being engaged in learning.

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Be the Inspiration

Where do you find inspiration during the summer?  Do you follow other educators’ tweets to see what they’re doing, reading, learning?  Do you connect with other colleagues and share ideas on how to set up your 2018-19 classroom?  Do you find yourself looking for exciting, new books in the education section of the book store?  Or are others looking to you?  Do you have that novice teacher asking what you’re reading so they can read it, too?  Do you run into students and families in the community?  As educators, we’re always a big part of our community and whether our focus is on our own summer learning or helping another with their learning, I’m sure we always inspire.

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Empower Yourself this Summer

I know, I know, it’s summer.  We have earned these precious few weeks to rest, relax and restore ourselves.  While that’s true, as educators, we are Lifelong Learners.  We can use this time not only to get some much-needed vacation, but to empower ourselves through summer reading, some professional development, maybe attending a conference.  We have plenty of opportunities that won’t take away from our down time and still allow us to grow and prepare for the next year ahead.

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Lincoln Center on Summer Hours, June 11-Aug. 10 / Lincoln Center funcionará con horario de verano del 11 de junio al 10 de agosto

Lincoln Center Starts Summer Hours
Lincoln Center will operate on Summer Hours from Monday, June 11 through Friday, August 10. During those weeks, Lincoln Center will be open Monday through Thursday, 7:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. and on Fridays from 7:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.

The week of July 4th, Lincoln Center will be open on Monday, Tuesday and Thursday from 7:30 a.m. to 5 p.m.; closed on Wednesday for the holiday; and open Friday from 7:30 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Lincoln Center funcionará con horario de verano del 11 de junio al 10 de agosto
Horario de verano en Lincoln Center y para inscripción de estudiantes – del 11 de junio al 10 de agosto.  Lincoln Center funcionará en horario de verano del lunes 11 de junio al viernes 10 de agosto. Durante estas semanas, Lincoln Center abrirá de lunes a jueves de 7:30 a. m. a 5 p. m. y los viernes de 7:30 a. m. a 1:30 p.m.

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School and District Offices Closed for July 4 / Escuelas y oficinas del distrito cerradas el 4 de julio

School and District Offices Closed on Wednesday, July 4
All CHCCS schools and offices are closed on Wednesday, July 4 in observance of the Independence Day Holiday.

Also, the week of July 4th, Lincoln Center is open on Monday, Tuesday and Thursday from 7:30 a.m. to 5 p.m.; closed on Wednesday for the holiday; and open Friday from 7:30 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Las escuelas y oficinas del distrito están cerradas el lunes, 4 de julio
Todas las escuelas y oficinas de CHCCS están cerradas el miércoles, 4 de julio, en conmemoración del Día de la Independencia.

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All Outdoor Activities Prohibited after 10 a.m. on July 2 / Prohibidas todas las actividades al aire libre después de las 10 a.m. el 2 julio

Heat Conditions Cancel Outdoor Activities
Due to dangerous heat conditions, all outdoor activities after 10 a.m. on Monday, July 2, are prohibited. Summer camps will take place indoors. Regarding athletic teams, please contact the team's coach to find out if practices will be held indoors or are canceled.

Por las condiciones de calor se cancelan las actividades al aire libre
Debido a las condiciones de calor peligrosas, el lunes, 2 de julio, después de las 10:00 a.m.  están prohibidas todas las actividades al aire libre. Los campamentos de verano tendrán lugar al interior de las instalaciones. Con respecto a los equipos deportivos, comuníquese con el entrenador del equipo para averiguar si las prácticas se realizarán en el interior o si se cancelarán.

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Everyone Plays a Part in CHCCS for Student Success

In general, Strategic Plans can look the same. The way some are written, the plan could be for almost any school district in America. One of our goals was to stand out and be different when creating our new 2018-21 Strategic Plan. We want to make sure we empower, engage and inspire students, staff and our community. We want to ensure everyone in our community is engaged and realize they are a stakeholder in the success of CHCCS students - because you are.

As we start rolling out our 2018-21 Strategic Plan, we will begin to share its details and goals. We will work towards meeting the expectations we set out to accomplish, as well as those of our stakeholders. The timing for our new Strategic Plan couldn’t have worked out better, seeing as I now have a full year of leading CHCCS and learning about its culture. Things are clicking as we continue to take on new challenges, like hiring new administrators and principals to lead our schools.

Here we go, starting a new school year and another exciting journey together. Our focus, like last year, is simple: we want to empower, engage and inspire. We will continue to use these words over the next three years, working hard on our four pillars: Family and Community Engagement; Employee Experience; Student Success; and Organizational Effectiveness.

When we return in August, please look for more information about our 2018-21 Strategic Plan. Soon, we’ll have handouts and information available on our website with all the details. Get ready to gear up, CHCCS!

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School and District Offices Closed for July 4 / Escuelas y oficinas del distrito cerradas el 4 de julio

School and District Offices Closed on Wednesday, July 4
All CHCCS schools and offices are closed on Wednesday, July 4 in observance of the Independence Day Holiday.

Also, the week of July 4th, Lincoln Center is open on Monday, Tuesday and Thursday from 7:30 a.m. to 5 p.m.; closed on Wednesday for the holiday; and open Friday from 7:30 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Escuelas y oficinas del distrito cerradas el 4 de julio
Las escuelas y oficinas del distrito están cerradas el lunes, 4 de julio
Todas las escuelas y oficinas de CHCCS están cerradas el miércoles, 4 de julio, en conmemoración del Día de la Independencia.

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Our Community Is Unique

The CHCCS community is not your usual school community. We may have the usual stakeholders - staff, students and families - but we also have a long-standing tradition of including others who don’t have specific ties to our schools. We have retirees and university students who volunteer in our schools. We have active grandparents who move to the area to be close to their families. We have business owners who want to financially support classrooms. We have some big universities who collaborate with us. So it was with this diverse tapestry in mind, we included our Community in the 2018-21 Strategic Plan. Our community is more than the usual - it is unique to us and helps to make CHCCS an amazing place to teach and learn.

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