Superintendent Marco told the RSU 4 Board on Sept. 8 that the district will refresh its strategic plan for 2025–26 and that the board will be actively involved in setting measurable goals.

Marco said administrators began the work over the summer and staff and grade-level teams have already answered the same set of planning questions. "Strategic plan is extremely helpful, just in the sense of, like, tying our, you know, decision making and, you know, what we focus on back to it on the regular," he said. "I want it to be part of our decision making process moving forward."

Board members were given five minutes to review a draft page included in the meeting packet. Marco then split the board into small groups for a "think-pair-share" exercise to capture priorities and potential pillars for the plan. He said he will compile the groups' notes and return to the board repeatedly with updates and proposed board goals tied to the strategic-plan pillars.

Board members discussed community engagement and invited participation; Christy offered to help host community sessions in a parent/community role. Marco asked the board to consider measurable goals the district can track and to think about how the plan will guide daily decision-making across departments.

The board did not take formal votes on the strategic plan at this meeting; the session was a planning and information-gathering step in a longer process that Marco described as iterative and inclusive of staff and community feedback.