Eagle Mountain-Saginaw ISD graduates will:

EFFECTIVE BASIC SKILLS

·         Successfully use the levels of communication skills demanded by the complex and ever-changing world -- skills in listening, speaking, writing, reading, mathematics, and technological presentations.

·         Locate, understand, and interpret written information in all content areas, including prose, documents such as manuals, graphs, and schedules.

·         Effectively communicate thoughts, ideas, information, and messages in writing; create documents such as letters, directions, manuals, reports, graphs, and flow charts.

·         Perform basic computations and approach practical problems in contextual applications by choosing appropriately from a variety of mathematical techniques.

·         Receive, attend to, interpret, and respond to verbal messages and other cues. Listen when spoken to.

·         Effectively organize ideas and communicate orally.

·         Stand confidently in front of a group and communicate ideas.

·         Communicate using a second language.

COMPETENT PROBLEM SOLVER/COGNITIVE SKILLS

·         Show proficiency in essentials of critical thinking, including the skills of organizing, interpreting, evaluating, and predicting in order to make reasonable and appropriate decisions.

·         Possess the ability to generate inventive ideas and produce authentic work.

·         Recognize problems and be resourceful in solving them.

·         Acknowledge the need to pursue research and/or alternative sources of information in solving problems.

RESPONSIBLE CITIZEN/PERSONAL/INTERPERSONAL SKILLS

·         Show tolerance for beliefs of others.

·         Be honest.

·         Be attentive to the health and safety of self and others.

·         Exhibit sociability.

·         Possess positive self-esteem.

·         Possess an established work ethic.

·         Be able to make responsible choices.

·         Recognize that one participates in, benefits from, and contributes to community/society.

·         Be an active participant in the democratic process.

·         Be a self-directed learner and seek information necessary to succeed.

·         Demonstrate respect for self and others, and property.

·         Recognize the importance of family in the learning process.

·         Take responsibility for own actions.

·         Take pride in setting high standards in all areas of life.

APPRECIATION FOR LIFE-LONG LEARNING

·         Set and achieve realistic and productive goals; continually seek to learn and grow.

·         Know how to learn.

·         Know how to seek and retrieve information relative to need and interest.

·         Make wise career choices based on self-knowledge, skill acquisition, and occupational exploration.

QUALITY CONTRIBUTOR/ HIGHER LEVEL SKILLS

·         Know how social, organizational, and technological systems work and operates effectively within them.

·         Suggest modifications to existing systems and develops new or alternative systems to improve performance.

·         Be receptive to innovation, anticipate changes, and is flexible.

·         Recognize the importance of team dynamics and understand that this avenue accomplishes the best work possible.

USES TECHNOLOGY/SEEKS QUALITY

·         Be motivated to keep pace with current advancements in technology.

·         Choose appropriate technology for a given task.

Based on the EM-S ISD Graduation Profile,
the current vision of the district is as follows:

CURRICULUM

·         The curriculum is constantly reviewed to ensure that the student learnings are challenging and will prepare the student to function effectively in the 21st century.

·         First, all externally assessed learnings are built into the curriculum in a spiraling way with the opportunity to master the objectives at least one grade prior to testing.

·         The curriculum is then built downward from graduation expectations using a spiraling curriculum that embeds increasing levels of difficulty of critical significant real-world learnings.

·         The design of the curriculum is articulated Pre-K through Grade 14* providing a student the opportunity to obtain college credit while still in high school. The integration of academic disciplines with all the subjects working together is an integral part of the curriculum.

·         The early years of the curriculum focus on basic academic learning proficiency with all students reading at least on grade level by the third-grade.

·         The academic focus continues throughout the school years with the upper grades providing for a study to pursue a cluster of courses designed around a career aspiration.

·         The upper grade student learnings will focus on concepts and processes that can be reinforced across the disciplines.

·         Students progress along the continuum of student learnings at a challenging pace. It is recognized that some students move faster along the continuum than other students.

·         The curriculum is designed in such a way that grades 9 and 10 provide an academic foundation with a strong core curriculum for all. In grades 11 and 12, students choose a program major in which academic, applied academic, and field experiences are organized around a special focus. Program majors are organized around career fields such as health or integrated academic disciplines such as humanities.

·         Program majors are designed to meet college entrance requirements and career-related technical and practical skills. Each student will graduate prepared for college, qualified for technical preparation programs, and/or able to secure entry-level employment.

INSTRUCTIONAL DELIVERY

·         Students are provided integrated and coordinated programs based on student needs and educationally sound and legally acceptable educational practices aligned to the district's core curriculum objectives.

·         Students are ensured equitable access and opportunity to participate in and benefit from high-quality curricular and extracurricular practices and access to the district's core curriculum objectives.

·         Programmatic efforts are cohesive and aligned to the written curriculum.

·         Funding sources do not delineate programs; rather, program resources are distributed based on student need.

·         Instructional strategies used to deliver the curriculum are the latest based on research in the field and expert thinking.

·         Teachers are using effective teaching practices with all students.

·         The student is seen as an interactor and an engager with learning.

·         Teachers, who are seen as collaborators by students, use multi- and cross-disciplinary teaching approaches.

·         Faculty are responsible for all students in the school rather than responsible for one class of students.

·         Parents and business members are partners in the students' learning.

·         Students, for the most part, work in heterogeneous groups, and teachers recognize and work with the variations within groups.

·         Approaches are differentiated in the learning environment in order to meet each student's appropriate instructional level of learning.

·         Each student has equitable access to learning.

·         Pullout programs are minimal.

·         Students are self-disciplined and work collaboratively with one another supporting each other's learning.

·         Mastery of learning is the focus.

·         Students study the same curriculum with a recognition that different students may be in different places in the course sequence for some subjects.

·         Each student has an individual learning plan. The plan is a fluid document allowing for change. There are multiple strategies for achieving a student’s plan. Advisement and mentoring programs are available to assist each student.

·         Authentic materials and resources are used by the teacher and student in the teaching-learning process

·         Active learning takes place through project development, joint research reports, community interviews, and guided experiments.

·         Technology is totally integrated as a teaching, learning, and communication tool that is applied in the broadest sense.

·         Every employee and student has access to current media.

·         Teachers use instructional strategies that enable students to formulate and solve problems. The students critique their own work for improvement. They communicate about what they are doing and achieve mastery of a topic, skill, process, or craft.

·         Students know the standards they are to attain for each unit of study.

HUMAN RESOURCE DEVELOPMENT

·         The district is considered a learning community.

·         The vision for instructional delivery and student achievement needs should lead or direct human resource development.

·         A comprehensive staff development plan is in place. It is for all constituents and provides for organizational, department/school, and individual development in a systemic manner. The plan has an element of intensive follow up and support.

·         Effects of staff development are evaluated based on actual changed behavior. The evaluation process, which is ongoing and includes multiple sources of information, focuses on all levels of the organization.

·         Time and money are provided to support the staff development needed to facilitate system changes.

·         The district culture/environment is one of challenge. People are creative and risk takers.

·         Counseling and career planning is available to all employees.

·         Staff members are prepared early for retirement opportunities.

·         Staff appraisal is for the purpose of professional growth. The main role of the supervisors is that of coach and mentor. The appraisal process is mainly formative in approach in order to provide feedback for growth.

·         There are no quotas for recognition. Success in the district is unlimited.

·         Employees are collaborative and find joy and meaning in their work.

·         People are valued as resources.

·         Employees trust one another.

·         Individuals take personal responsibility for the quality of their work.

·         Employees are selected based upon a match with the philosophy, mission, and goals of the district.

·         New employees are provided with a comprehensive orientation to EM-S ISD.

STUDENT PROGRAM ASSESSMENT

·         A comprehensive student and program assessment approach aligned to the curriculum objectives is in place providing for both formative and summative assessment.

·         The focus of assessment is formative to provide ongoing diagnostic and mastery assessments for instructional purposes.

·         Accountability is important, and summative measures are in place. However, the most important use of assessment is to assist the teacher in making daily decisions about the delivery of the curriculum.

·         Assessments are timely and relevant.

·         Many authentic assessments are used to ensure that students can perform the proficiencies of the curriculum.

·         Standards-based accountability and assessment systems are in place to assess a rigorous, concept-driven curriculum.

·         Assessment includes not only the product of student learning but also the thought processes of students. Emphasis is on performance and application of knowledge.

·         All programmatic efforts are assessed on their effectiveness in the delivery of the curriculum and ability to provide equitable access to the student learnings.

·         Use of data as feedback for improvement of all programs will be the norm.

·         Data is used to assess the effectiveness of support services.

PLANNING

·         Planning is systemic, designed for long-term sustained effects, and effectively communicated with all stakeholders.

·         The staff embraces a culture of continuous improvement.

·         Change is data driven and there is a unification of funding streams to bring about change and programmatic efforts.

·         A long-range systemic plan is in place.

·         Planning precedes, and is incorporated into ,the budget planning process.

·         Strategic action plans are in place and functionally integrated across divisions, departments, and schools.

ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURE AND DECISION-MAKING

·         A systemic and integrated organizational structure is utilized for making decisions.

·         The district works in cross-functional teams.

·         Individuals have multiple roles and shared authority.

·         Employees and other stakeholders work in interdependent ways.

·         People see each other as teammates and collaborators regardless of position.

·         All employees are engaged in working together to improve the system.

·         Decision-making is collaborative.

·         Diversity is valued.

SUPPORT SERVICES

·         Support services enhance the main function of the system – the delivery of curriculum and instruction.

·         Budget planning uses a performance-driven budget approach. Planning for change in the organization is an integral part of budget planning. Multi-year budget planning is the norm.

·         All support services gather data from those they serve to be more effective and efficient in the delivery of their services. Assessments of division and department effectiveness are in place and used as part of the process for improvement and budget planning.

·         The community is viewed as a resource for learning.

·         Other human development services are located in the facilities to better serve the needs of students.

FACILITIES VISION

A major responsibility of the board and administration is to provide adequate educational and support facilities. The physical climate of a school is an important indicator of a district’s ability to effectively deliver the curriculum.

·         Eagle Mountain-Saginaw ISD facilities support educational programs, provide equitable access to programs and resources, and are capable of meeting the future educational needs of students.

·         Facilities are safe, attractive, well maintained, and clean.

·         Facilities are planned to support community activities.

·         Grade-level arrangements are instructionally sound and fiscally efficient.

·         Facility planning is an integral part of the collaborative long-range planning process.

·         Facilities are equipped with current media and technology.