Accessibility Tools
Lawrence Public Schools has officially embarked on a strategic planning process that will shape the future of our district. Building on the foundation of our turnaround plan, we are preparing for a transition that will return local control to our district.
This strategic plan will lay the groundwork for Lawrence Public Schools’ next chapter – creating even greater opportunities for success as we continue our focus on enhancing student achievement. Most importantly, it will be crafted with and for our community. Students, families, staff, and community members will have a voice in this process, and your input will be crucial to our collective success.
Read the entire message from Superintendent Ralph Carrero - March 17, 2025
Your voice is critical to our collective success, so we want to hear from you! Please fill out the Family Survey to share your perspective.
Strategic Plan Family Survey
A strategic plan starts with gathering the voices of the community, staff, and other stakeholders – capturing their vision and aspirations.
These voices are then translated into clear strategies and goals, providing a framework for moving forward.
The output is a strategic plan that will serve as a roadmap, guiding all district and school level initiatives, and allowing everyone to work together towards a shared vision, ensuring holistic support for students.
The plan gives everyone — families, teachers, and leaders — a shared direction. It shows where we’re going and how we’ll get there.
It helps schools and the central office work more closely together, so students and families experience more consistent support.
Families can better understand the district’s priorities and track progress over time, building confidence in the work ahead.
This work has three key phases that will wrap up by the fall of 2025.
Goal: Understand where the gaps and strengths of the district are
Key Questions to Answer:
Goal: Align on a shared direction for the strategic plan by engaging all relevant groups and individuals.
Key Questions to Answer:
Goal: Codify the vision for student success by establishing strategies, creating goals, and developing measures to track progress.
Process to Define the Strategic Plan:
Building a strong strategic plan involves bringing in voices from a broad group of stakeholders. While folks across the Lawrence community will be engaged in a variety of ways, the district has assembled two core groups to guide this work:
The Advisory Board includes stakeholder groups that will be most impacted by this work. Together they represent a variety of perspectives and interests and equitably represent the Lawrence student body and the various areas of the school district. This team will meet roughly once a month from April through June to help craft the vision and inform the strategic plan.
The Advisory Board includes representatives of:
Their core roles on the Advisory Board include:
A full list of members can be found here: Advisory Board and Stakeholder Group List.
The district leaders on the Advisory Board will also provide guidance and direction on key deliverables.
The Senior Leadership Team includes representatives of:
Their core roles on the Senior Leadership Team include:
A full list of members can be found here: Lawrence Public Schools Senior Leadership Team List.
| Date | Engagement | Notes & Materials |
|---|---|---|
| January 29, 2025 | Senior Leadership Team | Strategic planning process kickoff |
| January 30, 2025 | School Visits & Principal Interviews | 3 school visits and principal interviews: one elementary, one middle, one high |
| February 1-28, 2025 | Central Office Interviews | Interviews across 8 central office departments |
| March 18, 2025 | Senior Leadership Team | Discuss findings from diagnostic assessment and interviews |
| March 27, 2025 | Families: Tu Voz Council | 71 comments from 20 family and community members LPS Strategic Plan March Tu Voz Council Presentation |
| Date | Engagement | Notes & Materials |
|---|---|---|
| April 2, 2025 | Principals: Survey | 32 responses from principals and school leaders |
| April 14-15, 2025 | Families: Virtual Coffee Hours | Comments and survey responses from 112 family and community members; LPS Strategic Plan Coffee Hour Presentation |
| April 28, 2025 | Advisory Board | Feedback on mission and vision from ~70 participants; LPS Strategic Plan Advisory Board Session 1 Presentation |
| April 30, 2025 | Senior Leadership Team | Develop draft core values |
| May 7, 2025 | Principals | Feedback on vision and mission from 32 principals |
| May 12, 2025 | Senior Leadership Team | Revise draft of vision, mission and core values using feedback across stakeholder groups |
| May 15, 2025 | Families: Tu Voz Council | Feedback from 15 family and community members on vision, mission and core values; LPS Strategic Plan Tu Voz Council Presentation |
| May 22, 2025 | Advisory Board | Feedback on vision, mission and priority areas of focus from ~50 participants; LPS Strategic Plan Advisory Board Session 2 Presentation |
| Date | Engagement | Notes & Materials |
|---|---|---|
| June 4, 2025 | Principals | Discuss findings from diagnostic assessment and principal survey, and gather feedback on priority areas of focus from 32 principals |
| June 12, 2025 | Senior Leadership Team | Refine priority areas of focus and develop strategies |
| June 12, 2025 | Advisory Board | Gather feedback on priority areas of focus and strategies from ~40 participants; LPS Strategic Plan Advisory Board Session 3 Presentation |
| July 9, 2025 | Principals | - |
| July 16, 2025 | Senior Leadership Team | - |
| July 29, 2025 | Advisory Board | - |
| August 5, 2025 | Principals | - |
| August (TBD), 2025 | Senior Leadership Team | - |
