Guest Column: Meeker School District focusing on four areas for excellence

By Chris Selle
Special to the Herald Times
RBC | The Meeker School District exists to meet the needs of students. We help students learn. We help them grow. We help them believe. We

help them try. We do these things while providing an environment that is physically, emotionally, and mentally safe for all students while also building accountability for their own behaviors. We challenge students to pursue excellence because we know their potential and long to see them achieve success.
At times, our task is monumental but we are rewarded with daily miracles while accomplishing this task. We directly confront our challenges because we know it is our privilege to foster curiosity, build discipline, provide support, expect excellence, embrace diversity, conquer adversity and share joy with our students so they are prepared to become successful and contributing members of society.
We take all children, regardless of their background, and hold them to high expectations in order to maximize the success of their school experience. We do this with some students for only a few days. For others, we enjoy their presence in our buildings and classrooms for 13 years. Regardless of the length of time students are with us, it is our opportunity, privilege, and responsibility every day to positively impact the lives of the children in our care. Every moment of every hour of every day of every school year we are entrusted with the possibility, and embrace the opportunity, to instill Meeker Excellence in the life of every child.
The preceding three paragraphs are taken, verbatim, from the Meeker School District Strategic Vision document. In contrast to a traditional strategic plan that often includes a myriad of action steps that effectively becomes a glorified “to-do” list, this document was developed as a vision for the school district which will define who we are, rather than what we will do. The Meeker School District Strategic Vision document is reviewed and updated annually by the District Accountability Committee and adopted annually by the Meeker School District Board of Education. The document in its entirety can be found at www.meeker.k12.co.us under the “Our District” tab on the left side of the webpage.
Because the school district’s vision statement is “Excellence in All We Do” the strategic vision was built around what is believed to be necessary to maintain Meeker Excellence. In order to achieve and maintain our vision of Meeker Excellence, we must remain steadfast in the following four focus areas:
n Provide a successful school experience for all students
n Ensure a safe learning environment
n Produce young adults equipped to be productive citizens
n Nurture strong community connections
These four areas form the basis of the Meeker School District Strategic Vision. More detail regarding the four focus areas, and their associated actions, can be found in the document posted on our website.
Meeker Excellence is more than simply a tag line. It is an ideal that, when embraced, will push all of our students to maximize their potential. Because I see evidence of this ideal on a daily basis in our schools, I am greatly encouraged that we are meeting the needs of our students. Who we are determines what we will do. I am proud to be a Meeker Cowboy because I know that also means I am privileged to have a role in pursuing Meeker Excellence!