School board launches update to district strategic plan; members weigh mission, timeline and community input
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Summary
Board members and staff began a workshop‑driven update to Ready 2026 with a goal to finalize a new strategic plan by July; discussion focused on mission and vision wording, community engagement, plan length (2–4 years), teacher retention, career/technical pathways, KPIs and aligning the plan with the superintendent's priorities.
The Manatee County School Board launched a process to replace the current Ready 2026 strategic plan, outlining a draft timeline and asking board members for priorities, scope and timeline. Mr. Chapman and Omar Edwards presented a framework and proposed a July target to finalize a new plan for summer rollout and school‑level adoption.
Presenters emphasized a collaborative process: a steering committee of district staff, community and business leaders will gather input via surveys and ThoughtExchange, a platform the district will use to hold strategic plan content and connect KPIs to school improvement plans. "We want to launch that plan in all of our summer leadership conferences and to our schools before the school year begins," Chapman said.
Board members debated whether to prioritize a mission or vision first, whether the plan should be a 2‑, 3‑ or 4‑year cycle (several favored 2–3 years to align with evaluation and election cycles), and how detailed KPIs should be. Several directors urged keeping politics out of the plan and making the document a living one that can be revised after newly‑elected board members have had a chance to settle into office.
Policy and content priorities suggested by board members included early learning and literacy, teacher retention, transportation efficiency, career and technical education, financial literacy, and emphasizing "marketable skills" and community pipelines so graduates can stay and work locally. Several members urged adding words such as integrity, community involvement and practical life skills to the mission/vision statement.
The board agreed to personal meetings between plan leads and individual members to refine language and priorities and to continue workshops through spring; the superintendent's priorities will be integrated so implementation can proceed once the plan is adopted.