5 Year Strategic Plan

1. 5 Year Strategic Plan St. Patrick Parish Washington, IL

2. 5 Year Strategic PlanSt. Patrick’s, Washington, IL Belief Statements We believe: parents are the primary Christian educators of their children We believe: that Christ is the center of our education and the reason for our school We believe: that the education of our children is a collaboration of parents and teachers We believe: that no child should be denied a Catholic education due to social or economic reasons We believe: that each person is created by God with unique potential that must be nurtured and developed

3. 5 Year Strategic PlanSt. Patrick’s, Washington, IL Belief Statements cont’d We believe: a Catholic education instills leadership qualities We believe: a Catholic education will help our students develop the character to meet moral and ethical challenges of the future We believe: in parental and parish support and involvement for a successful school We believe: a Catholic school provides a vital foundation for a life-long commitment to the Catholic Faith We believe: prayer is a vital part of our life

4. 5 Year Strategic PlanSt. Patrick’s, Washington, IL Belief Statements cont’d We believe: a Catholic education is vital to a person’s success throughout their life We believe: that a Catholic education enriches our community We believe: a Catholic education will teach respect for all stages of life, from conception to its end We believe: Catholic teachers/educators should be compensated fairly

5. 5 Year Strategic PlanSt. Patrick’s, Washington, IL General Strengths • Low tuition • Family involvement • Parish/church support/involvement • Small class size • Aides in larger classrooms • Dedicated leadership and staff • Balanced curriculum • Updates & improvements to facilities • Success of graduates • Catholic oriented education • Computer Lab • Washington community • Pastoral involvement • Willing participation of parents • Good teacher/student ratio • Commitment to excellence • PTC, Extra Curricular/Athletic Committee-Organization • School Masses • School pride • High test scores • Uniforms to dress code • Two deacons willing to help • Catholic atmosphere • Teaching of Catholic education/morals • Low teacher turnover • Proximity of facilities/location • Extra-curricular programs • Solid sacramental prep program • Strong Catholic identity • Strong parish commitment

6. 5 Year Strategic PlanSt. Patrick’s, Washington, IL Educational Programs – Vision Statement The quality of education at St. Pat’s will be at a level that inspires all Catholic families to send their children to our school. This will be accomplished by collaboration between our parents and teachers, high behavioral standards for our students and maintaining a strong focus on our Catholic identity. We will stand out in our community as the preferred educational provider by our effective and well researched educational strategies and resources. WE will strive for a well-rounded education that will include extracurricular activities and fine arts program, focusing on the spiritual, academic, moral emotional and physical growth of our students. This will provide the necessary balance to provide our students with the opportunity to become future leaders in society molded in the teachings of Christ. Our school will provide our staff with all the tools necessary to accomplish the above mission, including an updated curriculum, texts, resources and support both from the parish and other staff members.

7. 5 Year Strategic PlanSt. Patrick’s, Washington, IL Educational Programs Strengths • High academic standards • Success of Scholastic Bowl teams • Dedicated and experienced teaching staff • Utilization of teacher aides at primary grade levels • Jr. High performance on the diocesan religion assessment • Focus on Catholic identity (daily prayer, weekly school Masses, monthly Reconciliation services, etc.) • Graduates are consistently among the top students in the local high school as evidenced by the published honor roll

8. 5 Year Strategic PlanSt. Patrick’s, Washington, IL Educational Programs Strengths cont’d • Strong focus on core curriculum • Curriculum committees have been established for each of the core areas and these committees meet a minimum of four times a year to ensure that instruction addresses curricular objectives at each grade level • Parent volunteerism • CPDU committee is striving to identify professional development needs and opportunities for teaching staff

9. 5 Year Strategic PlanSt. Patrick’s, Washington, IL Educational Programs Strengths cont’d • High behavioral standards established for students • Teachers have received extensive training in ISAT writing standards and use of rubrics • Use of both diocesan religion assessment and NCEA’s ACRE assessment to analyze effectiveness of religious education • Each floor of school has a TV/VCR available • Some teachers using PowerPoint on a daily basis

10. 5 Year Strategic PlanSt. Patrick’s, Washington, IL Educational Programs Strengths cont’d • Reading Counts! Program to motivate students to read • P.E. classes feature physical fitness/wellness program • Emphasis on writing instruction including teacher training in ISAT standards

11. 5 Year Strategic PlanSt. Patrick’s, Washington, IL Educational Programs Critical Issues • Development of a professional staff development program/process • Technology plan is outdated and in need of revision/updating • Technology has not been integrated into instructional program at classroom level

12. 5 Year Strategic PlanSt. Patrick’s, Washington, IL Educational Programs Critical Issues cont’d • Need for a homework policy • Staff lacks training in addressing the instruction of children with special learning needs (gifted and remediation) • Need for increased educational programs in the fine arts

13. 5 Year Strategic PlanSt. Patrick’s, Washington, IL Educational Programs Tactics Prioritized: • We will develop a comprehensive and certifiable technology plan following the State of Illinois’ Technology Blueprint and Progress Guidelines. We will provide staff development, upgrade hardware/software, and examine exemplary practices to increase the integration of technology into the regular instructional program. • We will examine exemplary fine arts and foreign language programs in other schools (drama, art, music) and develop a plan for improving the fine arts and foreign language program at our school.

14. 5 Year Strategic PlanSt. Patrick’s, Washington, IL Educational Programs Tactics Prioritized cont’d: • We will identify sources and provide more training to teachers in the area of special learning needs (gifted and remediation). • We will examine exemplary elementary school library programs and develop a plan to update our school’s library materials, expand its hours of operation, and create a more welcoming atmosphere for the children. • We will examine current educational research on the educational benefits, appropriate uses, and effective amounts of student homework in order to establish/revise school policy and procedures at the various age levels.

15. 5 Year Strategic PlanSt. Patrick’s, Washington, IL Educational Programs Tactics Prioritized cont’d: • We will develop a comprehensive staff development plan based on faculty recertification plans, instructional needs and exemplary programs. • We will develop a rotational cycle for the examination and adoption of textbooks. • We will analyze and prioritize instructional resource and material needs in the school.

16. 5 Year Strategic PlanSt. Patrick’s, Washington, IL Institutional Advancement – Vision Statement (Finance/Public Relations/Recruitment/Student Personnel) We will explore all the possibilities to financially support our needs both through existing and new creative avenues of financing; this will include an ongoing commitment to cost efficiency and a balanced budget. We will explore every available source of revenue including the parents, the parish in general and alumni. We will use these structured fund raising strategies to keep our parish well informed of our financial needs and our expectations from them as responsible Catholics. In the long term, the financial viability of the school will be well known and have wide acceptance in the parish. All parishioners will be well informed about the financial status of the parish and school and the benefits of an education at ST. Patrick’s will be well accepted and promoted widely.

17. 5 Year Strategic PlanSt. Patrick’s, Washington, IL Institutional Advancement Strengths • Broad strong parish support through time, talent and treasure • A large number of families with children in the school • Continued increase in financial support by parishioners • 80% level of teacher’s salaries • Current school activities, such as the newsletter, extracurricular/athletic committee, Parent Teacher Committee, are considered valuable and effective tools for school public relations • The school’s administration and parish pastor are viewed as accessible to prospective student families and are strong advocates for the benefits of a Catholic education • St. Patrick School is viewed by its faculty and student’s parents as an institution of high academic standing that effectively teaches the Catholic way of life

18. 5 Year Strategic PlanSt. Patrick’s, Washington, IL Institutional Advancement Strengths cont’d • A substantial number of teachers and parents regard volunteerism by faculty, students, parents and other parishioners as excellent • Growing community • Stable economy • Families are encouraged to be actively involved in their children’s education • Students have ample opportunity to develop lasting and caring relationships with school faculty and other adults

19. 5 Year Strategic PlanSt. Patrick’s, Washington, IL Institutional Advancement Critical Issues • School salaries and benefits expenses will continue to increase • Policies and procedures of financial matters, the curriculum, discipline and parental responsibilities are unclear • Public relations plan at St. Patrick’s School is not adequately communicated to faculty or parents of students • School faculty and student’s parents are virtually unaware of the school’s recruitment activities • The success of St. Patrick’s graduates is not adequately advertised as a means to promote the school

20. 5 Year Strategic PlanSt. Patrick’s, Washington, IL Institutional Advancement Critical Issues cont’d • School faculty and student’s parents mostly feel that students transfer out of St. Patrick’s School because the school is not receptive to their concerns, rather than for reasons related to quality of education • Need for special needs program • Need for statistics for CCD • Number of unregistered families • Limited community involvement in some areas • Need for a foreign language program

21. 5 Year Strategic PlanSt. Patrick’s, Washington, IL Institutional Advancement Tactics Prioritized: • We recommend a comprehensive Public Relations and Recruitment Plan be developed. • We will communicate the need for school families to increase their contributions, by either donations or a tuition-based program. • We recommend instituting a program with planned activities and religious instruction to address the young adult age group of the parish.

22. 5 Year Strategic PlanSt. Patrick’s, Washington, IL Institutional Advancement Tactics Prioritized cont’d: • We recommend a social for new parishioners meeting to encourage registration. • We recommend asking a deacon or lay person to become involved in Washington Ministerial Association allowing opportunities to become involved with other churches.

23. 5 Year Strategic PlanSt. Patrick’s, Washington, IL Catholic Identity – Vision Statement We will continue to maintain our strength of Catholic identity by providing a well trained teaching staff who will help us educate and graduate children who know Catholic doctrine, history and traditions and who know, love and serve the Lord and their fellow man. We will exemplify what Catholic schools are trying to achieve in our diocese, by our determination to integrate Catholic doctrine, scripture and moral values into all curriculums in a warm, accepting, Christian and academic environment. Our school will continue to provide an affordable Catholic education that will help develop the character in our students to meet the moral and ethical challenges of the future. Our children will understand why being Catholic is special and by their public example illustrate our commitment to Christ. We will strive to enroll all the children in our parish in our school. In support of the above we will offer frequent all school Masses and opportunities for the Sacrament of Reconciliation as well as following the Catechism of the Catholic Church. To assist our teachers in their efforts we will provide workshops and retreats to help give them spiritual guidance.

24. 5 Year Strategic PlanSt. Patrick’s, Washington, IL Catholic Identity Strengths • Tremendous parish and pastoral involvement and support • The volume of available religious books relevant to teaching • Sacred Scripture used in all curriculum • Dedicated teaching staff educating students in Catholicism • Weekly Mass and a minimum 30 minute, four day a week religion classes • Various types of prayer and worship (in Catholicism) are used • Charity and volunteerism is taught and strongly encouraged • The teaching of our children to live the Catholic faith outside the walls of St. Patrick’s

25. 5 Year Strategic PlanSt. Patrick’s, Washington, IL Catholic Identity Critical Issues • The need for additional spiritual guidance workshops / retreats to give the teachers more opportunities for growth, support and learning • The defense of our faith.

26. 5 Year Strategic PlanSt. Patrick’s, Washington, IL Catholic Identity Tactics Prioritized: • We recommend the incorporation of Apologetic into our parish and school curriculum. Critical Issue: Positive defense of our faith. • We recommend more options for spiritual seminars, training, retreats, etc. to accommodate all schedules-possibly make at least one mandatory.

27. 5 Year Strategic PlanSt. Patrick’s, Washington, IL Building and Grounds – Vision Statement St. Patrick School will be a safe and welcoming environment. The school building and grounds will be well maintained, clean and attractive. A Building and Grounds Master Plan will direct and guide preventive maintenance and future plans for updates and enhancements.

28. 5 Year Strategic PlanSt. Patrick’s, Washington, IL Building and Grounds Strengths • Church and rectory are in good condition • Room for enrollment expansion in the school • Heating and cooling equipment in good shape Critical Issues • Need for improved parking for the church • Need for a parish center • Need for grass area for playground and playground equipment • Handicap accessibility for rest rooms in the church and school foyers • Old part of the school needs re-wiring • Need for improving basement steps in church basement

29. 5 Year Strategic PlanSt. Patrick’s, Washington, IL Building and Grounds Tactics Prioritized: • We recommend evaluating the current structure of the school with concerns for the Health and Safety issues of the staff and students. • We recommend a Comprehensive Buildings and Grounds Master Plan be established. • We recommend investigating repair and improvement of our existing parking and options for expanding our church parking • We recommend looking into the possibility of building a parish center to attract new parishioners, encourage involvement in parish activities and to stop the use of the school gym for parish activities • We recommend getting an outside grass playground and equipment to make the school ground more attractive and possibly attract more students.

30. 5 Year Strategic PlanSt. Patrick’s, Washington, IL Building and Grounds Tactics Prioritized cont’d: • We recommend the implementation of a method for reporting and addressing day to day maintenance needs and evaluating actions taken.