Our Strategic Plan

Our Strategic Plan is the roadmap we follow in our continuing - and measurable - focus on meeting the learning needs of each student.

The District Operational Plan is developed annually by the Superintendent, district administration and principals, and outlines projects to lead the district toward accomplishing our goals.

We use adaptive planning in Spring Lake Park Schools. Rather than a static strategic plan that attempts to identify all of the strategies and objectives necessary for the next five years, we adapt our plan annually. We focus on improving student learning through innovation within strategic anchors and aligned initiatives. We assess progress and consistently look outside the system at emerging influences as we strive to move from our current reality – where we sit today – toward what we want to achieve – our desired results.

While we have an annual District Operational Plan, we consistently assess our work within the plan and make adaptations as necessary to meet changing conditions. By adjusting our work on a regular basis, we bring greater coherence and alignment to our efforts.

Strategic and District Operational Plan Documents

Parent and Community Participation

We invite parents and community members to provide input, share ideas, and become involved with continuous improvement and innovation in Spring Lake Park Schools. Learn more about the opportunities to work with us to improve the experience for all students.

Short-term Involvement Opportunities

As we design and plan specific projects and initiatives, we invite parents and community members to provide input through a variety of in-person and online formats.

Focus Groups, User Groups, Input Teams

We conduct focus groups, user groups and input teams throughout the year on various topics to gather input and insight from parents, community members, and staff. These sessions focus input on a targeted topic from a small group of people, providing the opportunity to probe more deeply about user experiences, gather ideas, and gain insight about potential innovations. These are usually one-time opportunities that provide participants the opportunity to engage in what we hope are lively and interesting conversations about timely, important topics, without making a long-term commitment.

Community Conversations

Rounding conversations

Ongoing Program Committees and Advisory Councils

The district has ongoing committees and advisory councils where parent and community participants can provide input and insight. The level of commitment varies. Current groups include:

Athletics Advisory Council

Career and College Pathways Advisory Board

Communication and Connections Advisory

Community Education Advisory Council

Curriculum, Instruction, Assessment Advisory

We gather insight from our families at site-level events that are already happening at our schools to ensure we are hearing from our families at all schools. We focus on informal, yet intentional, conversations with parents, students, teachers, administrators, and community members at events from PTO meetings and family engagement events to literacy nights, course registration events and other opportunities in which our families are already coming to school to engage with the student experience. We also gather insight through other existing group meetings, including Special Education parent meeting, our Spanish-speaking parent group, our Native American parent meeting and others. For any formal curricular review cycles, our learning and innovation coordinators will attend site-level PTO Meetings to have more extended time with families for deeper learning on specific topics.

Facilitator: Melissa Olson

Early Childhood Advisory Council

Gifted and Talented Advisory Committee

Native American Parent Advisory Committee

Any family in the district who self-identifies as Native American is welcome to take part in this group which builds community while advising school staff on how best to serve Native students throughout the district. Committee meetings also include opportunities for families to explore important aspects of Native cultures, traditions and histories.

Facilitators: Autumn Person

Nutrition Services Advisory Committee

Panther Foundation

Parent Teacher Associations/Organizations (PTAs/PTOs)

Spanish and Arabic Family Groups

We currently have family engagement groups in Spanish and Arabic that meet regularly throughout the year and are facilitated by school staff and parents/guardians in partnership. Each group has its own unique goals and structure; however, both share the common purpose of building a sense of trust and community while partnering in support of Spring Lake Park Schools students.

Facilitators: Blanca Vazquez Franscisco and Nadifo Ali

Special Education Advisory

Comprehensive Achievement & Civic Readiness

The Minnesota Legislature has established statewide goals for public school districts to address in district Comprehensive Achievement and Civic Readiness (CACR) plans (formerly World's Best Workforce). The goals support students with academic achievement within their pre-K through grade 12 experience as well as prepare them to be active members of their community after graduation. Because the goals focus on work we are already doing to improve and innovate, in our plan we have included the following items to describe what we are doing aligned to the statewide goals:

Our strategic plan sets the vision for our district
Our annual District Operational Plan outlines annual projects to move us toward our vision
Innovative, customized and digital learning practices that lead to student achievement
Benchmarks that ensure each student graduates career and college ready
Report to the School Board - Fall 2026

Achievement and Integration Plan

The purpose of the Achievement and Integration program is to pursue racial and economic integration, increase student achievement, create equitable educational opportunities, and reduce academic disparities based on students’ diverse racial, ethnic, and economic backgrounds in Minnesota public schools.

Spring Lake Park Schools’ Achievement and Integration Plan includes the following goals:

Spring Lake Park’s four-year adjusted cohort graduation rate for students who identify as Hispanic/Latino will increase from 73% for the Class of 2025 to 75% for the Class of 2028.

Spring Lake Park Schools student participation in rigorous courses will continue to reflect the demographics of Spring Lake Park High School (within 3% for each student group): American Indian 0.5% in rigorous courses (2.5% in school); Asian 8.6% (8.8%); Black or African American 17.6% (19.2%); Hispanic or Latino 16.8% (17.7%); White 49.2% (45.8%); Two or more races 7.1% (6.0%); Free/Reduced-Price Meals 38.0% (40.3%)

To improve equitable access to diverse teachers for all students, Spring Lake Park Schools will increase the percentage of diverse teachers from 15.74% in the 2025-26 school year to 17% in the 2028-29 school year.

To achieve our goals, we are continuing to expand access to career and college readiness programming and support inclusive of AVID programming, leverage the work that our student and family advocates lead, continue support for our teachers and staff of color affinity group, and refine our recruitment and induction processes. Learn more about each of these strategies and interventions.

Pathways to Career and College Readiness

This strategy will include shared dual enrollment with Mounds View Public Schools and Centennial Public Schools in identified college-credit bearing courses and identified Career and College Pathways courses. This cross-district partnership provides an additional opportunity to physically bring students together for semester or year-long courses.

Cross-district partnership courses within this strategy have expanded over the past three years and will continue to expand. For example, Spring Lake Park High School courses open to the cross-district partnership includes courses within our Health and Human Services Pathway (Opportunities in Emergency Care, Teacher Education, Health & Sport Performance), and our Technology, Engineering, and Design Pathway (Construction Trades). Examples of courses at Irondale High School and Centennial High School open to the cross-district partnership include Welding, Chemistry of Foods, and General Metals.

This strategy will also increase access to college-credit bearing courses (including AP courses, embedded college courses, and articulated college courses) for student groups not enrolling in these courses at the same rate as their peers and provide additional opportunities for students to enroll in career and technical education pathways courses within Spring Lake Park Schools. This will happen through:

Targeted outreach and ongoing support to SLP students and their families through our counselors for personalized learning to increase access to embedded college, AP, and Pathways courses
AVID elective courses to support students in rigorous coursework

Finally, this strategy also provides opportunities for students to explore and gain experience in teaching as part of a larger “grow-your-own” initiative by offering courses specific to teacher education and child development within our Health and Human Services pathway. Our counselors for personalized learning will provide targeted outreach and ongoing support for students considering a career in education. This results in our elementary and middle school Spring Lake Park students to gain access to more diverse teacher aides in their classrooms, and increases the number of high school students who pursue teacher education programs in college and return to teach in Spring Lake Park.

Student and Family Advocates

At Spring Lake Park Schools, we want each student, family, and staff member to feel seen, valued, and connected. Our schools are made stronger by the many cultures, backgrounds, and experiences of our community. Student & Family Advocates help build these connections. They work alongside students, families, and staff to create welcoming school communities where people can learn from one another, share their experiences, and build positive relationships. By strengthening connections between home, school, and community, advocates help students feel a greater sense of belonging and support their engagement and success in school. Our Student & Family Advocates believe in the strengths and potential of each student. They work to make sure students have the support, encouragement, and opportunities they need to thrive.

Our student and family advocates work directly with students, families, and staff to strengthen relationships and create welcoming, inclusive learning environments so that each student can achieve at high levels. They:

Connect with families by providing learning opportunities and support, and by helping families and school staff communicate and understand one another.

Build community among students and families by supporting student groups and helping organize events and opportunities for families to get involved.

Help staff learn and grow by creating opportunities for staff to reflect on their own backgrounds and experiences and how these shape the way they work with colleagues, students, and families.

Staff Recruitment and Retention

We are continually looking for ways to improve how we recruit, welcome, and support staff. We want each new employee to feel prepared, supported, and connected from the beginning, while also creating opportunities for current staff to grow as leaders. This includes:

Supporting staff leadership and belonging through our Diverse Educators Empowering with Purpose group. This group creates opportunities for staff to develop their leadership skills and design and lead experiences that strengthen support and a sense of belonging among colleagues.

Strengthening recruitment and induction for both licensed educators and support staff, helping new employees feel welcomed, prepared, and connected to our schools and community.

Building partnerships with colleges and universities to create field experiences for future teachers and introduce aspiring educators to our schools and the Spring Lake Park Schools community.

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