Strategic Plan Progresses

Values Statement

What are values? The values are the core principles of a District, meaning what this community believes in and the expectations for how staff members treat the students, the community, and one another.

School Board Chair Glenn Holum said that the survey comments offered critical feedback to guide the process. 

“What it proves to me is that the community is really invested and wants to see North Marion improved,” Holum said.

Using survey information and the DSPT’s input during a February meeting, DSPT meeting facilitator Jerry Colonna shared a proposed values statement, which in summary, listed these words: inclusivity, community, expectations, responsibility, innovation and learning, persistence, and diversity. Colonna specifically stated that he heard a statement about diversity from North Marion High School CoPrincipal of Teaching Learning Bill Rhoades and one about persistence from Holum.

“I heard Glenn say: ‘We never give up,’ and, Bill, I once heard you say that ‘diversity is our strength,’ said Colonna, a member of the Oregon State Board of Education who previously served as Superintendent of the Beaverton and Redmond School Districts and as Director of Secondary Education for the Eugene School District.

Student member Ime Guzman suggested adopting an acronym (ICE DRIP) to make the values statement more memorable. 

“We can create a story from it because ice can be seen in so many different ways,” Guzman said.

Yet, ultimately, the group wanted to cut back the number of values, and the final product is still in the works. Members spoke up in support of their favorite values on Colonna’s list, such as inclusion.

“All kids need access to everything,” Learning Specialist Alicia Fritz, who works in Special Education. “Inclusivity is really important for our parents.”

However, the process of selecting the most representative values for the District won’t be easy.

“You need to have enough words or the right words to include everyone and that’s a challenge,” Superintendent Ginger Redlinger noted.

Redlinger summed it up by holding up the word “Believe” penned in block letters on a spiral notebook. Redlinger was quoting the title character from “Ted Lasso” who uses the word to remind him of why he comes to work every day. She says if DSPT members envision their own essential beliefs that will help build the District’s core values.

“My faith and what I hope for the world, how I can make people feel better today, what I can do to improve the lives of people I interact with, what I can do today,” Redlinger says, “those are the things that keep me going every day.”

To further guide the process, Rhoades suggested each member choose the two values that ring true for them.

“What does that look like for you and why does that resonate with you?” he said.

Facilitator Jerry Colonna guides the Core Planning Team in establishing core values for the strategic plan framework that the group is developing. Photo by Jillian Daley

Mission Statement

What is a mission statement? A mission statement states the reason an organization was founded and why it continues to exist. 

Colonna explains that a solid mission statement must be unique, brief, memorable, and easy to understand, while clearly stating the organization’s purpose. The DSPT broke into small groups to brainstorm and then shared a few proposed mission statements, one of which was humorous.

Redlinger joked that, while seeking to devise a mission statement, one group accidentally devised the perfect T-shirt slogan, “Never underestimate the students” or NUTS for short, and, on the back, “Cultivating young minds since 1862,” the year one small group recalls the first school opened in Aurora. Despite its goofiness, the DSPT enjoyed the statement.

“I actually gravitated toward it,” Primary School Teacher Kymberlee Rhodes said. “It is unique. It tells you our purpose. It ties into our community. It is engaging because it is fun.”

Middle School Teacher Mark John said it depends on what you compare it to, including the existing mission statement.

“Unlike our current one, I can memorize that one,” he said.

Director of Equity, Inclusion, and Title Programs Irma Patton noted that having its four schools on one campus makes North Marion unique and could be a key part of the mission statement.

The possibilities included: “Working together to foster growth and knowledge for every student for life,” “Creating an inclusive community through excellent/outstanding education,” “(A community) cultivating career and academic growth on one diverse campus,” “North Marion exists to shape and strengthen students to succeed in life,” and “A one-campus community preparing diverse learners for success (in life),” among other efforts.

Once the group was moving on to the next statement after the unofficial new T-shirt slogan, the DSPT team members could not resist a few more jokes.

Cyndi Nelson, Instructional Assistant and Oregon School Employees Association North Marion Chapter 116 President, noted that her main criticism of the next one was simply that, “It doesn’t have nuts.”

The room erupted into laughter. Colonna promised to spend time building a few statements from the ones that the DSPT created. Those statements are likely to be NUTS-free.

DSPT members review survey statements toward the beginning of the March 8 meeting. Photo by Jillian Daley

Next Steps

What is a vision statement? A vision statement sets the direction for improvement, looking to the future. It’s who and what the District wants to be. 

“What would the District look like if it was its best self, and in a three-year period?” Colonna asked, an ideal the DSPT can discuss at its next meeting.

The DSPT will meet again on April 5 at which time members will bring a vision statement from another organization that caught their eye.

“The end goal is achieving the strategic goals in the plan, so your vision is going to be about what we want to become,” Colonna said.

At its final meeting on May 17, the CT will draft strategic goals and strategies for the District.

Then, the School Board will work with the information from the DSPT to craft the final strategic plan. Once the School Board approves it, the three-year plan will be put in motion in September of 2022.

To share stories on the North Marion School District, email Communications Specialist Jillian Daley at jillian.daley@nmarion.k12.or.us.