On Tuesday, a stakeholder group met for the first time to discuss the Starkville-Oktibbeha Consolidated School District’s strategic planning for the first time.
The district is in the process of creating a new strategic plan with regards to consolidation and the new administration. The process began in December 2017. At the upcoming Feb. 13 SOCSD Board of Trustees meeting, consultant James Hutto of the Impact Education Group will work with the board on the strategic plan. Hutto previously worked with the district on its superintendent search in 2017 as a consultant of the search firm McPherson and Jacobsen. Much of the discussion at the meeting was centered on feedback received from an online survey the district released in December.
“We’ve gotten the feedback from that (stakeholder) group,” said School Board President Keith Coble. "What Dr. Hutto is going to present to us is kind of ‘this is what we got from the stakeholder group, and the ideas that they have suggested.’ I think we’ll be given the opportunity to respond and react to what they have suggested.”
Following the board meeting, the stakeholder group will meet once more before that strategic plan goes back to the school board for approval.
“It covered a broad breadth of things,” Coble said of the stakeholder meeting. “It was more about how we whittle them down into a more concise list. A lot of great ideas came forward. “
Coble said much of the discussion centered on what the priorities of the district should be, and how the district could use its diversity to its advantage.
Coble also said the discussion also covered focusing on the potential of individual students.
“We did have that meeting, and they developed a list of what we want to propose as our core beliefs, mission and major goals,” said Superintendent Eddie Peasant. “That group worked on those three areas, and the results of what they worked on that day will be presented to the board at the Feb. 13 board meeting.”
Peasant further explained the need for a new strategic plan.
“We’re at a time where there’s been lots of changes,” Peasant said. “It’s been five years since the last one was done, and the last one was done before consolidation, and we have some things on the horizon with the district that are impacted, and some things that are not in line with the previous plan.”
Coble further explained the need, saying it would give the district a unified vision and guidelines, while making the board’s role easier.
“We have to make tough choices a s a school district, because we never have as much money as we’d like,” Coble said. “We have to make tough decisions, and I think a good strategic plan will let us prioritize things.”
Coble also thanked the community stakeholders in the group for their role.