New Pasadena Unified Strategic 5-Year Plan Touts More Focused Mission, Value Statements

The Pasadena Unified School District Board of Education hosted a town hall meeting Thursday about the creation of a Strategic Plan that will define the district’s plans to achieve its goals over the next five years.

The purpose of the town hall was to engage the members of the public as the PUSD finalizes the 5-year plan. 

According to Board President Michelle Bailey, the board intends to finalize the plan at its June 22 Board meeting. 

“This strategic process has been more inclusive than other processes we are engaged in. It’s going to be a five-year initiative to take us to the next level,” PUSD Deputy Superintendent Dr. Elizabeth Blanco remarked. 

According to Blanco, the plan will represent a combination of hundreds of hours of work spread across the school district involving several groups as well as teachers and staff, parents, caregivers, community leaders as well as students. 

Five design teams — the Culture and Climate, Engagement, Facilities Master Plan, Educational Master Plan and Enrollment Committees — each with their own roster of PUSD community representation, worked on the plan. 

All their work was forwarded to a Strategic Planning Steering Committee, tasked with evaluating the recommendations of each design team and developing a five-year road map for implementing the Strategic Plan. 

According to Bailey, the plan seeks to revise PUSD’s mission and vision and values.

She said this will be done to ensure that these “very important” foundational statements “continue to resonate and support the strategic directions of the plan.” 

The mission statement was revised to read: “Pasadena Unified prepares students for success in an ever-evolving world. We are committed to cultural responsiveness and academic excellence.”

The previous mission statement read: “We are a caring community that promotes a deep love for learning by embracing the cultural background of every student. We hold high expectation for student achievement. We provide an innovative curriculum that represents the global value of education. With the commitment to academic excellence, we prepare our students for their place in an ever-evolving world.” 

“It was determined that less is more,” Bailey said when explaining the changes. 

The PUSD’s values were also revised and reduced from nine to five. 

The original nine PUSD values are integrity, respect, transparency, equity, accountability, collaboration, fiscal responsibility, innovation and excellence. 

The five new values would be cultural competency, equity, accountability, collaboration and fiscal responsibility.

Bailey also mentioned that those behind the strategic plan have created strategic pillars, which are things that encapsulate areas of focus over the next five years.

The five strategic pillars are as follows: Learner-Focused Instruction, Outstanding and Respected Employees, Quality Learning Environment, Effective, Responsive and Accountable Organization, and Purposeful Collaboration with Families and Communities to Increase Trust. 

Consultant Scott Harden said the public can submit their comments on the strategic plan by visiting pusd.us/strategicplan until May 26 at 5 p.m.

For more information, visit: https://www.pusd.us/cms/lib/CA01901115/Centricity/domain/4/documents/Strategic%20Plan%20Overview%20-%20Town%20Hall%20-%20EN.pdf