Assistant superintendent Katie Smith told the board the district will join 18 other component districts in submitting a regional planning proposal through ErieOne BOCES that aligns with New York Inspires and the new Portrait of a Graduate. The plan, Smith said, grew from surveys and focus groups and aims to coordinate curriculum, attendance strategies, transportation innovation and expanded course offerings across the region.
Smith said the plan's five core components include curriculum and assessment alignment, attendance interventions (including a proposed "Every Child Every Day" collaborative forum), expanded out-of-school-time partnerships (including potential participation in Northwestern University's Cities Learn), transportation collaboration among business administrators and transportation supervisors, and an analysis of course offerings to expand student pathways.
"We're in that next phase now where there's a plan that Dr. Capuana will be submitting to the state on behalf of the 19 component districts for Area 1, Us being 1 of them," Smith said. She told the board that the district will formally attest to the submission in September.
Smith said the plan includes advocacy elements to address local and state barriers, and specific near-term ideas framed with benefits and obstacles. She highlighted family support centers, teacher-certification pathways and transportation solutions as priority areas for local collaboration and state-level advocacy.
Board members had no substantive objections at the meeting; the presentation will lead to an attestation action in September when the board will formally sign on to the regional plan submission.