The Montezuma-Cortez RE-1 school district has announced that it will host strategic planning meetings with “four or more members” of its Board of Education and interested parents and community members.
They plan to create a strategic plan for the district with a focus on transparency.
The first meeting is Friday, April 11; and the second, on Saturday, April 12 from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. at the district boardroom, 400 N. Elm St.
Seats are limited. To join, email Deb Ramsey at deb.ramsey@cortez.k12.co.us.
The strategic plan would determine the direction of district for the next three to five years. The previous strategic plan was worked on was when Tom Burris became superintendent in 2022.
“The big rocks to move, if you will, were to improve student achievement in the school district, to consolidate and streamline the system,” Burris told The Journal. “That’s what led to the closing of Manaugh, and there were other items about attendance and discipline in the schools.”
Since Manaugh Elementary’s closure, the district has worked on student achievement and attendance. This year, district attendance is higher than 90% “across the board,” partly credited to attendance meetings every two weeks.
Burris added that the No. 1 goal is still student outcomes and student achievement. At the start of this strategic plan, three schools in the district were on the state’s academic clock, but now, there are none on the clock.
During the 2021-22 school year, the district was ranked 137 out of 179 of Colorado’s school districts and was ranked 154 in 2022-23. As of this writing, the ranking for 2023-24 hasn’t been published.
“This (new) strategic plan … where do we want to go? We would like to be in the top 25% of the state as far as student achievement,” Burris said. “How do we get there? That’s going to be done through three to five SMART goals that are specific.”
SMART goals are goals that are specific, measurable, achievable, relevant and time-bound.
“We’re looking for three SMART goals,” Burris said. “We’re looking for ideas on how to get there, what the other goals might be. … We want our kids reading at grade level, we want our kids doing math at grade level. We want our kids at school, attendance wise, we want our kids to be challenged.”
