Mission and Beliefs

During the 2005 – 2006 school year the St. Lucie County School Board worked collaboratively with community members, parents, school representatives and district staff to revisit the district mission and identify and develop shared beliefs about public education in St. Lucie County.  These beliefs were formally approved by the Board on February 26, 2006 as codified in School Board Policy 1.20

Mission Statement

The mission of the St. Lucie County School District is to ensure all students graduate from safe and caring schools, equipped with knowledge, skills and the desire to succeed.

Beliefs

The St. Lucie County School District believes:

• Every child can learn, and each child can learn more than he or she is now learning.

• The core business of the St. Lucie County School District is creating challenging,  engaging, and satisfying work for every student, every day.

Quality schools are the responsibility of the entire community.

• A healthy public school system is key to the maintenance of a healthy democracy.
• The School District and its employees have mutual obligations for support and development toward continuous improvement.

• The School District must promise continuous improvement in student achievement and in the success of each individual.
  

School Board Policy 1.20

Every child can learn, and each child can learn more than he or she is now learning.

• School district personnel, community members, parents, and students share the responsibility for student achievement.
• Quality learning experiences are the central focus of all school and district activities.
• We ensure equity and quality for all students, not just some.
• Equity without quality is prejudice, quality without equity is privilege, equity plus quality equals excellence.
• Students are volunteers: their attendance can be required, but their attention must be earned.
• We teach the whole child, not simply the test-taker.
• All students have the absolute right to a safe, trusting, and drug-free environment.
  

The core business of the St. Lucie County Schools is to create challenging, engaging, and satisfying work for every student, every day.

• The teacher's primary role is to design rigorous, engaging work that leads students to higher levels of learning.
• We provide clear and compelling understandings about what students are expected to know and be able to do.
• We provide support for student success, understanding that different students master tasks in different ways and at different times.
• District and school support personnel are partners with teachers and schools in the core business.
• Collaboration around the core business is essential to quality learning experiences.
• Quality tools are required for quality work.
• Instructional needs drive the design and construction of facilities.
• Quality facilities are required for quality work.

Quality schools are the responsibility of the entire community.

• Parents, students, community members, agencies, businesses, governmental entities, other educational institutions, and the school district constitute "the community".
• The community works together to provide the political advocacy and support needed for student success.
• Our community actively advocates for support of education by holding candidates and elected officials accountable for their commitment to quality public schools.
• The community is responsible for providing and supporting the facilities and Infrastructure necessary to accommodate growth.
• All district employees are committed to sharing our vision and engaging the community in successfully confronting our common challenges.
• The school district has an obligation to achieve quality results for both the schools and the community.

A healthy school system is key to the maintenance of a healthy democracy.

• Quality schools develop productive, contributing citizens.
• Quality schools improve the quality of community life.
• We strengthen relationships and broaden perspectives by embracing diversity.
• We model principles of representative democracy both in our schools and throughout the district.
• Systems of checks and balances contribute to quality decisions.
• We share a fundamental common commitment to the common good.
• Leaders are responsible both to constituents and for shaping the future.
  

The district and its employees have mutual obligations for support and development toward continuous improvement.

• Our core values are fairness, respect, trust, integrity, and commitment to improvement.
• We develop leaders committed to our common vision at all levels in the system.
• Collegiality and collaboration are key to our success.
• All district employees have the absolute right to a safe, trusting, and drug-free environment.
• All district employees provide prompt and courteous attention to their customers.
• We are a school system, not a system of schools.
• We are a "learning organization", in which all roles serve the common purpose of pursuing continuous improvement in quality learning experiences for all.

We promise continuous improvement in student achievement and in the success of each individual.

• We are committed to a common vision.
• We use our beliefs and vision as the key criteria for making decisions.
• We lead and manage by results.
• We hold ourselves mutually accountable for quality effort.
• We assess progress toward agreed-upon goals on a regular basis.
• We expect and we work to bring out the best in every employee.
• We accept change as inevitable and shape it into opportunity.
• We exercise flexibility and we encourage innovation in pursuit of our goals.