Welcome to the LCMSD 2036 final feedback site! Please read through the site--you will see the draft Graduate Portrait, Adult Portrait, and System Portrait, and the proposed Core Values listed  at the top of the photograph above. Please use the feedback form to share your comments.

In Spring 2024, the Board of Trustees and the Superintendent of Larkspur Corte Madera School District  (LCMSD) launched a community-wide collaborative process to develop the long-term vision for public education in the district. 

Looking ahead to 2036, this vision articulates the aspirations for that graduating class, and what will increasingly be true for each of our graduating classes from 2025 onwards. The elements of this vision were developed through the iterative, collaborative work of a Guiding Coalition — a group of 53 people from across Larkspur Corte Madera, picked for the diverse communities and viewpoints they represent — and amplified by more than 12 community meetings and two community surveys (see The Roadmap for more detail). The work included the exploration of future trends likely to impact education; a virtual learning journey to learn about schools and organizations that are already engaged in ideas LCMSD might be interested in adopting; and design exercises that considered the needs of students, educators, families and community members.

Altogether this process engaged hundreds of stakeholders, including students, families, district staff, parents, and civic, business, community, and philanthropic leaders. 

All the data from these meetings were analyzed and synthesized, and through a series of draft ideas, additional inputs, comments and feedback were iterated upon to develop these near-final vision elements. This is the final round of feedback before the vision elements are brought to the Board of Trustees for final adoption.

This roadmap depicts the timeline and sequence of community engagement activities from the Spring of 2024, through to the finalization of the Vision.

What is a Vision?

A vision is a bold leap into the future that paints a vivid and aspirational picture of the world we want to create. It identifies a destination — a “north star” — that inspires and aligns collective action, shapes strategies, and drives growth. The vision for LCMSD is focused on what we want to be true for our graduates. This is a journey of continued creativity, learning, and improvement, and the boldness of a vision can quicken our progress with inspired actions and collaborations.

A vision helps us to step outside the constraints of the present and reimagine what is possible. It liberates our imaginations to think differently about our path forward. A vision is not a strategy. While the vision identifies the What and the Why, the strategy that follows on from the vision defines the How. Before we decide how we want to move forward we need to know where we are going.

Nestled in the heart of Marin County, our community is deeply committed to innovation, excellence, and fostering strong connections. LCMSD’s vision builds on these values while prioritizing the needs of the whole child—academic, social, and emotional. In 2016-17, we engaged in a strategic planning process that identified core strategic priorities, which continue to resonate strongly with our stakeholders and test high in community surveys.

However, as we look toward the future, we recognize the importance of building a broader and more vivid picture of our community’s aspirations—specifically, what it means for our graduates to be successful in high school and beyond. Coming out of the pandemic, with the shifting landscape of technology, the increasingly diverse needs of our students, and the demands of a world that requires collaboration, communication, critical thinking, and adaptability, we knew this was the right time to take bold action.

In 2024, LCMSD launched the largest stakeholder engagement process the district has conducted in several decades. This initiative reflects our commitment to listening to our community and reimagining what education can be. Our vision is a shared call-to-action, inviting families, educators, and partners to unite in preparing our students for a future where they can thrive and make meaningful contributions to the world.

This vision comprises four main pieces: Graduate Portrait; an Adult Portrait; a System Portrait; and a set of Core Values. If we want certain things to be true for LCMSD graduates, the adults who support them will also need to emphasize and model a certain set of knowledge, skills, mindsets and dispositions. And if we want graduates to attain the portrait attributes, and adults to be supported to develop and emphasize these attributes, the whole school district system needs to transform in certain ways to ensure that these goals and aspirations will be met successfully.

Graduate Portrait

The Graduate Portrait is focused on the outcomes for students — what they will know, be, and be able to do by the time they graduate high school. 

Adult Portrait

The Adult Portrait is focused on “ways of being” that will enable the adults working in the school district to promote each student’s development and attainment of the Graduate Portrait, and also be part of the school system’s evolution to support students through the System Portrait.

System Portrait

The System Portrait is focused on creating the conditions that will enable LCMSD students and adults to thrive and grow. 

Core Values

The Core Values express the ethical principles that guide the school district’s actions in making the vision real. The vision is written in the present tense, as if it had already come about, in order to give us a sense of what the future it describes might feel like.