Lisa Henry, left, Sky O’Donnell and Kristen Foster introduced Brookfield Local School District’s strategic plan and smart goals to the school board.
Brookfield school officials in October presented the fruits of six months of work by the District Leadership Team, a committee made up of administrators, staff and community representatives. The team has created the district’s first-ever strategic plan, and updated the district’s smart goals.
The strategic plan focuses on four areas: student experience; staff; innovation and technology; and school culture and climate.
“A strategic plan obviously is fluid,” said Kristen Foster, director of teaching, learning and accountability. “We know these are ever changing. But, these are four areas that I think will always be of priority and importance.”
In terms of student experience, the plan pledges to address curriculum, career pathways, student activities and student support activities.
The staff objective deals with recruitment and hiring; professional development, including techniques to manage a classroom and deal with behavioral issues; and promoting staff physical and mental health.
Innovation and technology not only deals with hardware and software and emerging technologies, it also embraces physical and cyber safety and college and career readiness.
The final strategic plan goal, culture and climate, includes implementing recognition programs to celebrate achievements for students and staff; providing student leadership opportunities and staff professional development; and fostering activities that engage the community.
The smart goals focus on math, English and Positive Behavior Intervention and Supports, and are “specific, measurable and tied to data,” unlike past goals, which were more vague, Foster said.
The math goal is to increase the number of students in the graduating classes of 2030 and 2033 who meet their projected growth goals as measured by the NWEA Maps assessment test through the 2026-27 school year, said Lisa Henry, who teaches Brookfield High’s most advanced math classes.
While the state math test gives a one-time report on a student in terms of proficiency, the NWEA Maps assessments are administered three times a year and project student growth based on student scores in past assessments, Henry said.
“What we really want to see in the end is growth,” she said. “Asking our students to work toward achieving expected growth feels like something they can reach more reasonably.”
The PBIS goal is to reduce chronic truancy by 10 percent by June 1, 2027, said Supt. Toby Gibson.
The English Language Arts goal is to see 80 percent of students meeting their growth goals in their NWEA Maps scores by the end of each year, said Sky O’Donnell, site coordinator for the Youngstown State University afterschool program operating in Brookfield and a member of the ELA committee.
“Improving reading comprehension is essential for academic success,” he said. “It’s essential for everyday life.”
