As the leaves begin to fall, we are entering our fourth year of pursuing the District 117 Portrait of a Graduate, the North Star that guides our continuous improvement. The Portrait names six competencies we want every student to have developed by the time they leave ACHS or LCHS and it shapes how we teach, coach, mentor, and lead across the district.
The Portrait belongs to this community in the truest sense. In the spring of 2023, our Strategic Plan Coalition brought together more than 80 students, staff, parents and guardians, alumni, community members without students in our schools, and representatives from local businesses, organizations, and higher education. The coalition met for 12 hours over four evenings that March, April, and May. Together they chose the six competencies, and then they wrote the definitions we still use today. When we describe what a District 117 graduate should be able to do, we are using our community's own words.
Last spring we got the band back together! More than 50 students, staff, parents, community members, and Board Members joined us for two evenings, in March at ACHS and in April at LCHS, to tell us how we are doing. One message came through clearly: many people in our community still don't know the six competencies or what they mean. We took that to heart, and this fall the Portrait is going up on the walls in more places with large graphics at both schools. So what do these competencies look like in the daily life of a Sequoit or an Eagle?
A graduate who Collaborates inspires others toward a common purpose and takes responsibility for self and team through shared leadership. On August 12, our junior and senior Link Crew leaders hosted events at both schools so our newest Sequoits and Eagles would feel like they belonged from day one. Upperclassmen giving up a summer day to lead the students coming in behind them is shared leadership at its best!
A graduate who Communicates articulates ideas clearly in speech and writing and sustains meaningful conversation with empathy and respect. Every winter, the Storytellers Series at ACHS and Writers Week at LCHS bring accomplished speakers to our stages, and then our own students step up to the microphone to share personal writing with their peers. Our School Board Student Ambassadors practice this competency too, speaking on behalf of their classmates at our Board meetings.
A graduate who Thinks Critically leverages curiosity to solve problems, takes intellectual risks, and challenges assumptions using authentic evidence. Our AI Foundations and Coding in Python course sequence, launched with a state Computer Science Equity Grant our district earned over more than 100 other applicants, asks students to write code, watch it fail, find the problem, and try again until it works.
A graduate who Embraces Diversity affirms their authentic self, develops empathy for others, and reflects on their own biases. Last spring's Inclusion Week at both schools ended with the Big Game, when athletes from ACHS and LCHS took the court in front of packed stands of cheering classmates and staff. It was one of the best afternoons of the year in District 117!
A graduate who is Emotionally Intelligent makes responsible decisions that consider their impact on others and builds strong, healthy relationships. Each year our clubs and teams lead food drives for local pantries, make blankets for families, collect clothing at games for local shelters, volunteer at the Open Arms Mission, and help with the Antioch Rotary Club's holiday meal deliveries. Students who notice what their neighbors need and act on it understand this competency better than any definition could.
A graduate who is Courageous sets ambitious goals and advocates for self and others in a socially responsible and empathetic way. At our community meeting last March, 14 students led all six breakout sessions, guiding a room full of parents, staff, community members, and Board Members through honest conversations about how well their own schools are living up to the Portrait.
The Portrait is also what we look for when we walk into classrooms. Every two weeks, our administrators visit eight classes at each school looking for evidence of student engagement and growth in these six competencies. The new graphics will help everyone see the Portrait, but the best evidence will always be what our students do every day. We owe deep gratitude to the more than 80 coalition members who gave their evenings in 2023 to write this vision, to everyone who came back last spring to help us measure it, and to the communities we serve for trusting us to bring it to life. Thank you for helping us raise graduates ready for whatever comes next!
