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Superintendent recommends third‑party community engagement for Hermiston strategic plan; board discusses scope and timeframe
Summary
At the March 2025 special meeting the superintendent recommended hiring a third party to lead community engagement toward a new strategic plan; board members discussed outreach methods and plan timeframe and asked the superintendent to report back with options.
Dr. Mooney, representing district leadership, recommended at the Hermiston School Board’s March 2025 special meeting that the board engage a third party to lead community outreach and development of a refreshed strategic plan now that many bond projects and elements of the previous Vision 2025 initiative are complete.
Dr. Mooney said the recommendation is to use a consultant skilled in strategic planning and community engagement to conduct face‑to‑face sessions with parents, students, staff and community stakeholders rather than rely solely on an online survey. “I actually mean, like, face to face engagement opportunities and opportunities to engage in a conversation, not just a survey,” Dr. Mooney said during the meeting.
Board members discussed the scope and timeline of a new plan. One board member asked whether OSBA (Oregon School Boards Association) provides this service; Dr. Mooney said there are individuals and firms who provide facilitation and engagement services and offered to begin outreach. Another board member said a 15‑year strategic plan may be too long in an evolving economic and workforce environment and suggested a shorter horizon; Dr. Mooney and other board members discussed blending longer‑range vision statements with shorter tactical cycles.
Board members also spoke in favor of using an external facilitator to reduce bias and elicit candid feedback. Dr. Mooney agreed to begin outreach to identify options and report back to board officers with proposals and timelines.
The board then moved to schedule and future agenda items; Dr. Mooney said he would start outreach the following week and return with options for board officers to review. The meeting recessed to an executive session pursuant to ORS 192.660(2)(b); the open session later adjourned with no public detail on the executive session’s substance recorded in the transcript.
No formal procurement or contract award was made at the meeting; the superintendent’s action was to begin outreach and to report back to the board officers.
