CAPE DISTRICT BEGINS WORKING ON NEW MASTER PLAN, MISSION STATEMENT

Work has begun on a new, comprehensive five-year plan for the Cape Girardeau School District.

The Board of Education began developing a mission statement and statement of beliefs during a meeting Thursday. Members worked for nearly an hour refining statements first developed five years ago when several teams of community members and educators drafted a master plan of action to improve the district's finances, programs and facilities.

Board members said the master plan, which included plans to finance a new elementary school and high school and reconfigure grade levels throughout the district, was very useful and needs little adjustment to continue being effective.

"I don't see anything wrong with what we said in that mission statement," said board member Dr. Bob Fox. "These still seem relevant to me."

The board approved draft documents that will be reviewed by a group of about 60 community members and educators next week as part of the district's Comprehensive School Improvement Plan (CSIP).

The group will conduct a series of open meetings to outline concerns and strengths of the district and develop a series of strategies and action plans members believe the district should prioritize over the next five years. Assistant Superintendent Mark Bowles, who is leading the development effort, said he hopes to have a draft plan before the end of July.

"This is very similar to what you all did in creating the master plan," Bowles told board members.

Since July, all Missouri school districts have been required to develop written long-term plans that incorporate improvement issues related to student performance, long-term facility and maintenance needs, library media standards assessment, state and federal program improvement requirements and other issues.

The plans must be in place before a team of educators visits Cape Girardeau schools in November as part of the Missouri School Improvement Program, a review conducted every five years to determine school accreditation.

"The CSIP is just the flip side of the Missouri School Improvement Program," said board president Dr. Ferrell Ervin. "Teachers have been reviewing the curriculum and structure of education for the MSIP. Our part is this mission statement and the merging of the mission statement with those evaluations the teachers have been doing."

The CSIP committee is open to the public. Those interested in developing the long-range plan should contact Mark Bowles at 335-1867.