Racine Unified board hears consultant: align strategic plan with coherent governance

At a meeting of the Racine Unified School District Board of Education, governance consultant Dr. Steech told trustees the board should define broad results and leave operational and strategy decisions to the superintendent and staff, arguing that helps create clear accountability.

The consultant emphasized that “if you are responsible for a decision, you have the accountability for that decision,” and urged trustees to limit board direction to high-level outcomes rather than operational details. He said the board’s principal responsibility is to “define the desired results for the district students and require their achievement.”

The message responded to board concerns that the district’s current strategic plan — adopted in 2022 and widely developed with staff and community input — became “murky,” with board members unclear whether it was the board’s plan or the superintendent’s. Board member Mister O'Connell said the earlier process left the board unsure of ownership, and said he would be “very content to say the strategic plan is the superintendent’s, and he's responsible for crafting it to achieve the goals that the board has set.”

Dr. Steech walked the board through the coherent-governance framework, using an architect/contractor analogy to illustrate why boards should avoid micromanaging technical decisions and instead set expectations, then hold the superintendent accountable for outcomes. He pointed the board to existing policies called operational expectations (OEs), saying many of the board’s public-engagement and reporting expectations already live in those documents and may only need refinement rather than wholesale replacement.

On monitoring and data, the consultant recommended the district aggregate classroom- and building-level assessments up to district reporting so trustees see near-term indicators rather than relying solely on state tests with long delays. Board members raised concerns about the Wisconsin Forward Exam’s timing and the lag between testing and public reporting; Dr. Steech and Superintendent Soren discussed combining state data with more timely local assessments so the board can measure progress and adjust strategies.

Several trustees said the session clarified longstanding frustrations: that the current strategic plan does not align with coherent governance and that monitoring and indicators need to be improved before the board can rely on the plan as the primary accountability tool. Trustee comments suggested the board will begin by refining its results policies, recommitting to OEs, and then reworking the strategic plan so the superintendent can lead strategy development within that framework.

Superintendent Soren said he welcomed the approach and wants the board to craft results and values that the administration and community can use to build a coherent strategic plan. Both the consultant and the superintendent asked trustees to review vision, mission, values and current results monitoring reports ahead of a planned board retreat so the retreat can focus on refining results and indicators.

Votes at a glance

- Motion to approve previous meeting minutes: moved by Miss Fuller; seconded by Mister O'Connell. Vote recorded as six yeses; outcome: approved. (See provenance.)

- Motion to adjourn: seconded by Mister McConnell; outcome: passed by voice vote. (See provenance.)

The board agreed to bring suggested edits on results and OEs to the retreat and to have Dr. Steech review current monitoring reports and indicators beforehand.