1. Turn Your Mission and Vision Statements into Clear Guiding Principles with a Colorful Graphic to Help Shape Your School Culture: An Interactive Workshop
October 17, Wednesday, 4:30-5:30 pm
20-30 min, presentation
Then time to work on guiding prnciples
Michele Gregoire Gill, PHd
UCF Center for creating and sustaining innovative schools ucfccsis.org

2. I wonder if this is our faculty and staff’s actual mission statement?
I hated mission statements and visioning sessions when I was a 5th grade teacher. They seemed to waste a large amount of time, they were forced on us, and we knew that nothing we said would really make a difference. In fact, our sessions went something like this.

3. Our goal was to sound good to the public, but our statements were so broad and vague they didn’t mean anything. Like this fill in the blank mission statement template.

4. Common Mission Statement Problems
Too much educational “jargon”
Misaligned with school’s real values/goals
Too vague
Un-actionable
Not used for school decision making

5. Why does this matter?

6. Mission statements can be powerful tools—they help define your school and its values/goals. They reveal your school’s identity to those inside and outside your school. They should influence school decision making, from strategic planning, to financial purchases, to curricular decisions.
In this talk, I’m going to present a case study of a school has turned its mission statement into clear guiding principles that set the bar for school decision making and which shape our school culture. Galileo School is a high-performing public charter school in Sanford that is known for its unique school culture and welcoming school atmosphere.
After the case study, we are going to “flip” this presentation to give you time to work on turning your mission/vision statements into guiding principles. And, if during this process you find that perhaps your mission and vision need work, that is ok too. Better to have a strong mission/vision statement than not.

7.
I started Galileo School as a volunteer effort back in 2010, and now I’m working to help other schools through the UCF Center for Creating and Sustaining Innovative Schools.
The purpose of CCSIS is two-fold: ​
To conduct, compile, and disseminate research on starting and sustaining innovative schools and learning environments.
To provide consultations and assistance to support the development of new schools, schools in transition, and existing innovative schools and learning environments.
We are looking for partner schools and districts to support—you can find more info on our webpage.
Today’s talk is our inaugural presentation for CCSIS, and we will be doing a webinar on a similar topic with the Florida Charter Support Unit in November in case your colleagues are interested in learning more about this topic.

8. Now onto our case study.
Galileo School opened in August We spent a lot of time working on our mission and vision statement to ensure that our school identity and purpose were clear. Here’s what we came up with

9. MISSION STATEMENt
The Galileo School for Gifted Learning provides innovative, research- based education in a nurturing environment for gifted and talented students and those who want to learn in a gifted learning environment that will challenge and motivate them to pursue their passionate interests in service to others.
Here’s our mission statement—who we are. The vision statement is about what we do. For the case study, I’m going to focus on the mission stmt, but I encourage you to tackle either or both today.
While this is certainly better than the “Make it to the Weekend” mission, it still contains some buzzwords and is fairly vague. In fact, there’s always going to be some vagueness to a mission stmt because they are generally only one sentence long. What we found early on that as we hired new teachers and welcomed new families to Galileo School, many didn’t understand our unique approach to learning. What does it mean to be innovative? To challenge and motivate students? The Galileo School mission statement had the advantage of being crafted by the school’s founders and grounded in a strong, research-based approach to education, which was already articulated. But we were still having a hard time communicating the key points of the mission stmt to even those within the school.
A few years into the school’s existence, after we had settled down a little and could take time to breathe a little, we began to discuss how to better communicate our mission to our stakeholders. Frankly, one of my fellow board members who was not in the field of education asked if I could just clarify the mission using everyday language. And so, the Galileo guiding principles were born!

10. Galileo School Guiding Principles
Now I want to talk a little about the guiding principles of the school, which came directly from my training in educational and developmental psychology.
Started with self-determination theory—need for competence, relatedness, and autonomy, as well as Vygotsky’s ZPD.
Nurture (aka the Love Principle)
We focus on the individual child, nurturing his/her social and emotional needs.
Challenge (aka the Goldilocks Principle)
We meet students in their ZONE with work that is not too easy, nor too frustrating for them.
Motivation (aka the Power Principle)
We give students voices and choices in their learning.
Students get to participate in classroom AND school-wide decision making on issues that affect them
Passionate Interests (aka the No Child Left Bored Principle)
We provide frequent opportunities for authentic, interdisciplinary learning based on students’ interests.
Service (aka the Empathy Principle)
We encourage students to use their gifts and talents to solve problems to help make the world a better place.
Galileo School Guiding Principles
©2013 Michele Gregoire Gill. All rights reserved.

11. Discuss how each principle derives from mission AND research

12. vision STATEMENt
The goal of the Galileo School for Gifted Learning is to engage our students through an integrated curriculum using science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) content while simultaneously providing them with the guidance to see its applications and purpose through history, literature, and the arts; thereby producing our country’s next generation of independent thinkers.
Before we proceed, I want to share Galileo’s vision statement—we could have started here, but we chose the mission stmt. We use the vision stmt for curricular planning. But I’m sharing this in case some of you prefer to start with your vision stmt in today’s workshop.

13. Now it’s your turn
First, examine mission/vision see which one you want to work with If you think yours is too vague, that is fine. Still work with it. You can go back to your board and CEO and work to refine your mission/vision if possible. You may prefer to work with your overall school philosophy. Identify your school’s target goals for the education of its students.
First, examine mission/vision see which one you want to work with
If you think yours is too vague, that is fine. Still work with it. You can go back to your board and CEO and work to refine your mission/vision if possible.
Then try to identify the core thing you want to communicate to stakeholders. What is unique about your school? What is your identity? Or, maybe, what do you want your identity to be? For those working with vision stmts, what do you see yourself doing? Producing? Goals?

14. Action Steps: Step 1
Break down each line of your mission or vision statement into separate ideas
Example, Galileo vision:
To engage our students through an integrated curriculum using science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) content while simultaneously providing them with the guidance to see its applications and purpose through history, literature, and the arts; thereby producing our country’s next generation of independent thinkers.
So here we have:
--engage application/purpose
--integrated curriculum --independent thinkers
--STEAM
I will review the steps first, then you will have time to implement them.

15. Action Steps: Step 2 2. Create Guiding Principles
Consider how you might restate each separate idea into “plain” or everyday English. Are there any fun or relevant connections you can make to terms that relate to your school? What is the research support behind each idea?
--engage: Motivation, engagement, interest
--integrated curriculum: meaningful learning
--STEM: need for STEM majors, importance in 21st Century economy
--Application: Applied learning, problem solving
--Independent thinkers—critical thinking, reasoning skills
Draw a pix perhaps. Think of cultural references or even school culture that relates to each idea. Where is the research support behind each? Now try to tie each idea to a key image/phrase. Then how do they relate? (share different graphics for them to try out.
Then pair with others. I will walk around and assist.
Create Guiding Principles.
Examine how they are related to each other
Choose a graphic (or create one) that reflects their conceptual relationship spatially
Sketch out how this might look
Share with a peer and provide helpful feedback—what works for you? Does it make sense to you? Do you clearly understand each principle?

16. Action Steps: Step 2 2. Create Guiding Principles
Engagement principle: Instruction centers on deep engagement in learning
Connected curriculum: We maximize opportunities to teach content in an integrated rather than isolated format to promote meaningful learning.
STEAM Rules! We ensure that all students find success with STEAM based courses
Problem-Solving: We provide opportunities for students to engage in problem solving to help them apply what they are learning to the outside world
Independent Thinkers: We encourage students’ thinking, even when their thoughts and ideas are different from our own.
Draw a pix perhaps. Think of cultural references or even school culture that relates to each idea. Where is the research support behind each? Now try to tie each idea to a key image/phrase. Then how do they relate? (share different graphics for them to try out.
Then pair with others. I will walk around and assist.
Create Guiding Principles.
Examine how they are related to each other
Choose a graphic (or create one) that reflects their conceptual relationship spatially
Sketch out how this might look
Share with a peer and provide helpful feedback—what works for you? Does it make sense to you? Do you clearly understand each principle?

17. Action Steps: Step 3
3. Examine how these principles are related to each other
Discrete ideas?
Hierarchical?
Cyclical?
Connected?
For our example, I think engagement is the core, and the other principles all relate to it, so I am going to look for a graphic with something at the center or underlying the other components

18. Action Steps: Step 4
4. Choose a graphic (or create one) that reflects their conceptual relationship spatially and sketch out principles

19. Here are some sample graphics, taken from MS Word’s SmartArt option, but you can find much more online.
Top left: start with first idea, which leads to second, which leads to next. Process format.
Top right: equal parts of a whole
Bottom left: all pieces of a puzzle
Bottom right: nested ideas—start with something small but central—the student, for example, and move to larger context surrounding the student, e.g, the classroom

20. Top left: One fundamental idea, with three (or more key components)
Top right: Two or more fundamental ideas, with subcomponents
Bottom left: process view, one thing leads to the next. Underlying arrow can be the overarching big idea of the school
Bottom right: Venn diagram of key ideas with overlap.

21. Engagement Connected Curriculum STEAM Rules! Problem-Solving
Independent Thinkers
Here’s one for the Galileo vision that I prepared for this talk.

22. Action Steps: Step 5 Are they phrased without jargon?
5. Share with a peer and provide helpful feedback
Are the principles easy to understand?
Are they phrased without jargon?
Do the principles capture ALL of the parts of the school’s mission or vision statement?
Does the graphic accurately depict the interrelation of ideas?
Share with a peer and provide helpful feedback—what works for you? Does it make sense to you? Do you clearly understand each principle?

23. Action Steps, Summary
Break down each line of your mission or vision statement into separate ideas
Create Guiding Principles
Examine how they are related to each other
Choose a graphic (or create one) that reflects their conceptual relationship spatially and sketch out how this might look
Share with a peer and provide helpful feedback
Hand out lined paper. Write it out with each idea on a separate line. Also, hand out examples of graphic organizers.

24. What kind of school are you trying to build?
Your school has a unique vision and mission to bring to your communities. Don’t hide your light under a bushel. Let it shine through your words and images. Make copies of these guiding principles and put into each classroom. Use for strategic planning. Put questions on your annual school surveys to see how well you are
What kind of school are you trying to build?

25. Thank you!
Any questions?