Organizational Culture

We believe in the endless quest for excellence.

Excellence cannot be compromised. We impose upon ourselves an obligation to reach beyond the minimal. Though we may be better today than we were yesterday, we are not as good as we must become tomorrow. None of us can settle for less than our best, and we can never stop trying to surpass what has already been achieved. We must continuously challenge and compete with ourselves.

We believe in commitment to professionalism.

We believe that professionalism is needed to create an environment of excellence toward the whole school community. This commitment and responsibility of every person within the organization is essential to its success and can only lead the system to the necessary standards of exemplary conduct of the school community.

We believe in continuous improvement.

Continuous quality improvement is our way of life; it is the process we will use to achieve our vision. The school system endures and prospers only by moving forward. The past has given us the present to build on. But to follow our visions to the future, we must see the difference between traditions that give us continuity and strength, and conventions that no longer serve us. We must have the courage to act on that knowledge. We must anticipate change, shape it to our purpose, and act as its agents.

We believe in unity in diversity.

We believe that diversity strengthens society and should be honored and protected but also acknowledged as a challenge. True unity is more than self-interest; it results when values and ideas are shared. We look to the unifying force of these beliefs as a source of energy to brighten the future of our system and all that depend on it.

We believe in the dignity of the human being.

We believe we are part of a business, which deals with human beings--people dealing with people. We believe that each person involved in this system is a unique human being, with pride, needs, values, and innate personal worth. For our system to succeed, we must operate in a climate of openness and trust, in which each of us freely grants others the same respect, cooperation, and decency we seek for ourselves.

We believe school improvement is primarily people improvement.

Significant, lasting school improvement cannot be separated from staff development. Commitment to continued growth should be expected of all people and all programs supported by school resources. These resources should be committed to ensure that these expectations are met.

We believe in progressive thinking and innovation.

We promote growth through seeking new ideas and searching for new information. We will continuously seek knowledge, search and research. We must think creatively and continuously pursue new ideas to achieve uncommon breakthroughs. The status quo in schools cannot be maintained: schools will either move ahead or move back. We must increase our knowledge, learn from our mistakes, and emphasize quality in all aspects of our work.

We believe in creating an exceptional workplace with ethical conduct.

We believe in empowering each individual to grow and develop to their fullest potential. Every decision we make and every action we take must follow the highest ethical and moral standards. We are team players who show respect for our colleagues and commit to the highest standards of quality and professionalism.

We believe power shared is power gained.

The whole school community--board members, administrators, teachers, and parents--are strengthened through the synergy that results when they share their power with one another.

We believe family provides the foundation for the development of the individual.

The family, community, and school share the responsibility for education, but the student is ultimately responsible for learning.