Our Purpose and Direction
By Stacia Harris , Communications Department
Buncombe County Schools ’ ( BCS ) teachers and staff members strive everyday to offer our students a world-class education . Regularly evaluating our successes and opportunities is a key element as we continue to thrive as a school system . This evaluation is meticulously conducted every 5 years through a process called reaccreditation , and in 2017 , we earned reaccreditation through AdvancED . This nonprofit organization conducts extensive reviews of K-12 schools all over the world . They ask school systems to compile vast amounts of documentation ( evidence ) about all aspects of the school system . AdvancED aims to certify that every aspect of our school system is on solid ground and on a positive and productive trajectory .
“ This system-wide internal and external audit is vital to our school system ,” says Assistant Superintendent Joseph Hough . “ We want to make sure we are continuously improving the quality and standards of our education process .”
BCS faculty , staff , and administrators completed the arduous process of earning reaccreditation through AdvancED in late March of 2017 . This 9-month process culminated with a 4-day visit from an external review team .
“ This was a significant undertaking for our school system ,” says Superintendent Dr . Tony Baldwin . While the reaccreditation process is challenging and rigorous , it ’ s an important achievement . Likewise , the opportunity to self-assess where we are and where we aim to go as a school system is critical ; the review by an external team of experts to validate the findings is invaluable .”
As part of the reaccreditation , a team of BCS administrators , teachers , and community stakeholders examined our Mission and Vision . We sought input from various stakeholder groups , in part , by conducting a survey . We asked ourselves the following questions : Who are we as an organization ? What are our goals ? What do we believe in ? Through this introspective and thoughtful process , new Purpose , Direction , and Core Belief statements were created . We hope this clarity will help shape our daily objectives for teachers , school staff members , central office staff members , parents , and other stakeholders .
Associate Superintendent Susanne Swanger says , “ We are excited that our new statements capture the importance of teaching and learning . The internal review process has allowed us to reflect upon our strengths and challenges as well as create next steps for continued success . As a system , we put our students first and the quest of offering the best education possible is ongoing .”
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