The Rocky View School (RVS) Board of Trustees approved the outlined priorities and goals for the 2022/2026 strategic plan as the 2023/2024 budget priorities.
“The RVS annual budget is driven by RVS’ vision of being a world-class learning organization where all students achieve their absolute best,” Superintendent of Schools Greg Luterbach said during the Feb. 9 school board meeting.
In support of the RVS four-year plan to foster innovators, and the operational needs of the school division, advancing student success through school-level supports, enhancing innovative programming and learning spaces for students, improving literacy and numeracy skill development at all levels, and boosting mental health and wellness for students and staff were identified as key priorities to guide the development of the budget.
RVS administration supported the alignment of the strategic plan priorities with the budget priorities after trustees approved the strategic plan in December.
“The strategic plan reflects the community voice and sets the stage for success in advancing the division’s vision and purpose. Without financial support, the achievement of the strategic plan priorities and goals are unlikely to come to fruition,” Luterbach said. “There needs to be a connection and coherence between what we say is important, and how we are going to fund our organization.”
He added, “The priorities are the priorities, and the reality is to move priorities forward there needs to be financial support behind them.”
Utilizing the priorities in the strategic plan as the budget priorities are expected to reinforce the importance of the strategic plan and maintain a set of priorities for the organization.
The priorities and goals of the strategic plan include improving students’ learning, strengthening the RVS workforce, bolstering infrastructure, and connecting with the community.
To improve students’ learning RVS is working to deliver instruction with a focus on numeracy and literacy, to strengthen the workforce, RVS is continuing to develop and implement strategies to retain a skilled and diverse workforce, ensure a collaborative and inclusive team environment, support learning opportunities that build expertise, and enhance leadership development, and foster a supportive workplace.
To bolster infrastructure, RVS is planning for more spaces to learn and work, operate schools where students and staffers can thrive, and ensure technology is meeting the needs of students and staff.
Lastly, RVS is connecting with the community by working to foster new partnerships and strengthen existing relationships while engaging and communicating actively to build relationships.
“I see opportunities for all students in these priorities. This is a really good direction for us to head in,” RVS Ward 1 Trustee Shali Baziuk said. “I’m excited about this direction, and these priorities are absolutely in line with what we want to deliver to our students.”
RVS Ward 3 Trustee Melyssa Bowmen explained that although she appreciates the desire to align budget priorities with strategic priorities, she doesn’t see alignment with exact duplication.
She added that trustees have the opportunity when developing budget priorities to set priorities with a specific financial focus, and using the strategic plan as budget priorities feels too broad.
“For myself, being more specific instead of being so broad would be helpful. I’d much rather have an opportunity to set direction with a focus. I’m seeing some of my concern become reality, and that we’ve pulled ourselves further back out of this important process,” Bowmen said. “I hope we can reflect, look deeper, and set more specific priorities that absolutely would align with our strategic priorities and the goals within them.”
Luterbach explained that it’s important there is a link between the budget and the priorities, as the strategic plan priorities determine the budget.
Ward 5 RVS Trustee Judi Hunter said aligning the priorities will ensure the school board has all the pieces of the puzzle to ensure students and staff are successful.
“Process is always messy. Everything is always in flux, but to me, keep the big vision forward, to say this is what we want for our kids, and here are all the pieces we need to make it happen,” Hunter said. “That can shift, but at least we have a vision of what that looks like for our kids.”
Ward 4 RVS Trustee and board chair Norma Lang said aligning the strategic plan and budget priorities is an opportunity to create priorities and goals inside the strategic plan, that can double as budget priorities.
“The ‘Ah-Ha’ moment, when the idea that the budget priorities could equal the strategic plan priorities happened after we developed priorities for the strategic plan,” Lang said. “We can look at this year after year, and in my view, this is an experimental year to see if this works.”
