PARTNER

EMPOWER | PERSONALIZE | DESIGN | PARTNER

Partner with our community

The old adage is true; it does take a whole village or, in our case, an island to raise a child. We know that for our children to be successful, we must work together as a community to support them both during and outside of school hours.

Objective 7: GIPS will cultivate a culturally proficient district in which all individuals are valued.

Progress Indicators

1. Increased percentage of stakeholders reporting that they feel welcomed, valued, and connected as measured by a survey.

2. Increased percentage of minority staff.

3. Increased number of ESL-certified teachers.

4. Increased cultural proficiency demonstrated at the individual and district level as measured by a district-adopted instrument.

Strategic Initiatives

1. Evaluate the cultural proficiency of GIPS as related to:

   1. Policies and procedures.

   2. Surveys.

   3. Schools and classrooms.

   4. Hiring practices.

   5. Curriculum, instruction, assessment, and resource adoption.

2. Research and implement tools that will help the district increase its cultural proficiency (e.g., Intercultural Development Inventory).

3. Provide relevant professional development.

4. Promote cross-cultural learning and understanding by, for example:

   1. Establishing a storytelling program.

   2. Establishing world café or table talks.

   3. Incorporating multicultural education throughout curricula.

5. Create an advisory committee to plan, implement, and evaluate strategies related to cultural proficiency in classrooms, schools, and the central office.

6. Implement a Grow Your Own teacher education program that:

   1. Establishes an education-focused Grand Island Preparatory Academy (GIPA).

   2. Creates opportunities for current teachers to become ESL endorsed.

   3. Creates pathways for adults in the community who want to become teachers to join the profession.

Objective 8: The Grand Island community will be regularly and deeply engaged as partners in ensuring our students’ success.

Progress Indicators

1. Increased percentage of parents who perceive that the district and school provide them with resources and information to support their child’s learning.

2. Increased number of community partnerships that are aligned to district priorities.

3. Increased numbers of internships, job shadowing, and diploma-to-hire opportunities for students.

4. Increased percentage of incoming kindergartners who have participated in high-quality early childhood education programs.

Strategic Initiatives

1. Establish partnerships with local businesses, government agencies, and non-profit organizations to support students and district goals, including:

   1. Mapping Grand Island organizations and their offerings.

   2. Setting out a schedule of meetings with area businesses.

   3. Defining what resources each partner can contribute.

   4. Creating a communication tool for coordination with partners.

   5. Recognizing the contributions of partners.

   6. Coordinating student-based services with partners, especially within new community schools.

   7. Reviewing and expanding Grand Island Senior High’s current community partnerships based on anticipated workforce needs.

2. Expand and develop opportunities for families to support their children’s learning:

   1. Expand Parent University (PU) content to include information for parents about GIPS system rules and culture (e.g., unwritten rules, expectations for student attendance).

   2. Identify aspects of PU that can be expanded to support all families in the district.

   3. Promote the information available on the PU and the district websites.

   4. Identify additional opportunities to offer to families to help them support their children’s learning, such as programs or courses focused on college access and awareness, homework help, and English language acquisition.

3. Develop a robust family and community communication plan to promote greater understanding of and engagement with Grand Island Public Schools.

4. Increase access to high-quality early childhood education programs by partnering with community-based programs to:

   1. Collectively agree to common quality standards.

   2. Identify strategies for building a strong workforce of expert early childhood professionals, including coordinated, high-quality professional learning opportunities.

   3. Share data about child and family program participation and needs.

   4. Facilitate a smooth transition for young children from early childhood education to kindergarten.