There’s something magical about beginning, fresh starts, blank pages, the excitement of possibility. At the Lebanon School District, we’re standing in one of those seasons of new growth. With our 2025–2028 Strategic Plan now in place, we have the opportunity. and the responsibility to cultivate meaningful change in our schools and community.

Much like planting a garden, this work isn’t about overnight results. It’s about preparing the soil, planting intentionally, nurturing consistently, and having the patience and persistence to watch something strong and lasting take root. This plan is not just a document; it’s a community-grown vision, built with the hands, hearts, and voices of the Lebanon School District.

Listening First: A Community-Centered Foundation

When we began this process in late 2024, we didn’t start by drafting goals; we started by listening. The Lebanon School District decided to partner with 2Revolutions, an education design lab with a strong track record of helping schools and districts across the country transform learning. We chose 2Revolutions because of their commitment to human-centered design and their ability to help communities deeply listen, reflect, and act.

As part of the 2Revolutions’ process, we did a lot of listening to our community,

1) through empathy sessions with the Board, District leadership team, Principals, and faculty in each building, all designed to understand the current state of things, what’s working, and what’s not working;

2) we then held design sessions for the broader community to imagine what is possible for our district’s future.

Then, we formed a Community Planning Group (CPG), a diverse team of stakeholders charged with shaping the vision and developing the draft plan. Together, the CPG analyzed input, surfaced priorities, asked hard questions, and re-centered our collective “why”: What is best for our students? The process was both robust and inclusive. Through all of the work, we kept coming back to the simple but powerful question: What do you hope for our learners? 2Revolutions helped us gather and make sense of hundreds of voices, students, families, educators, and community members, ensuring every perspective was heard and valued.

These stories and insights didn’t just inform the plan; they became the foundation of it. After the initial draft was created, we returned to the community to gather additional feedback, making sure the final plan was not only bold and future-focused but also a clear reflection of what our community believes our students need to thrive.

Why This Plan Matters

Strategic plans can easily become just another binder on a shelf, but ours won’t. Our plan doesn’t try to do everything. Instead, it emphasizes what matters most: our students, our educators, our system, and our community. As one of our CPG members stated, “If everything matters, nothing matters”. Throughout the planning process, we made sure to note all the thoughts and ideas collected, so even if they are not a focus this round, we can review and reevaluate for the future.

Each of the six strategic goals has been carefully designed to support growth across these key areas. They include:

Integrate the Lebanon Vision of a Learner across every school
Increase engagement through the use of learner-centered strategies
Prioritize staff learning to promote learner-centered approaches
Create an environment that promotes emotional well-being and student success
Analyze operational decisions through the lens of the Lebanon Vision of a Learner
Improve communication and transparency

These aren’t lofty aspirations. Each goal is rooted in clear strategies and action steps. Like strong seedlings, they’ve been thoughtfully planned, and we’re ready to nurture them to maturity.

From Plan to Action

Our leadership team has been working diligently this summer to prepare for fall implementation. From shared language to shared tools, we're fostering a sense of collective ownership. Sustainable change doesn’t bloom from the top down; it grows within the classrooms, hallways, and hearts of our schools.

We’ve also built in natural checkpoints. Throughout the year, we’ll reflect, recalibrate, and report out on progress. These check-ins are like tending a garden, ensuring we pull the weeds, water the roots, and celebrate the early blooms.

For principals, this plan provides a framework for aligning building-level goals with the district's vision, a structure that nurtures innovation and scales success.

For teachers, it’s a clear message: we’re investing in you. Not just as educators, but as professionals, learners, and leaders.

For students, it’s a promise that their experiences matter, that learning is personal, purposeful, and relevant to who they are and who they want to become.

For families and community partners, it’s an open invitation: Help us grow something great.

Let’s Grow This Together

Transformation doesn’t sprout from a single season. It comes from consistent care and shared responsibility.

This year, we will ask our school community to consider what we will plant. What ideas, practices, or relationships will we help grow?

During this first year, we will celebrate the early sprouts, the new ideas taking root, and the visible signs of growth. And when we encounter weeds, those challenges, habits, or systems that threaten to crowd out progress, we’ll face them together, with patience and persistence. Every thriving garden needs care, attention, and teamwork. Most importantly, we will commit to tending the shared garden that is our Lebanon School District.

Because our harvest, our students, are worth it.