Strategic Vision

State of the School: February 18, 2021

List of 1 frequently asked questions.

Partnership

During the summer of 2019, Kingswood Oxford employed the consulting services of Greenwich Leadership Partners. Stephanie Rogen, founder of GLP, worked with members of the Board of Trustees and the Senior Administrative Team to develop an approach for undertaking this project. It involves, among other steps, soliciting input and feedback from all of Kingswood Oxford's constituents. Rather than produce a monumental tome of initiatives that is shelved once it is produced, GLP advises its clients to develop a dynamic plan based on the School’s core values that can be adapted as priorities are achieved and new opportunities present themselves.

Since 2010, GLP has worked with more than 64 independent schools and school districts, as well as higher education organizations and education-based not-for-profits.

Communication

List of 1 frequently asked questions.

KO Will Shape Its Future

In his recent blog post, Head of School Tom Dillow shares his vision for the strategic plan

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Process

The Strategic Design Team is a facile group, representative of the various constituencies in the Kingswood Oxford community. Their role is to guide the strategic planning process and cull information in an iterative process. Importantly, this group does not decide our strategy for the future. Rather, it facilitates conversations and gathers and synthesizes feedback from a variety of KO constituents that will be critical towards determining our path forward. Ultimately, the committee will compose a “Strategy on One Page” — a vision statement and list of strategic priorities based on workshops and focus group feedback obtained over several months.

Our Vision

Kingswood Oxford is a transformative day school that engages students in real-world and interdisciplinary learning opportunities by expanding the classroom beyond our campus and partnering with people and institutions in the Greater Hartford area. Our signature educational approach develops compassionate collaborators, ethical problem solvers, and active citizens who lead and serve in the wider community.

Strategic Plan Approach

At the beginning of 2019, Head of School Thomas Dillow announced that Kingswood Oxford School would embark upon a strategic design process to frame a compelling vision for the future and to articulate the key commitments and priorities that will enable the School to collectively achieve that vision.

Following Kingswood Oxford’s re-accreditation by the New England Association of Schools and Colleges (NEASC) last spring — an exercise rooted in deep self-evaluation that occurs every 10 years —
the School entered into the planning process to reimagine its future and chart its continued success. This vision will drive KO's strategic priorities and will provide the roadmap for the allocation of our talent, time, and resources.

The strategic vision will center around how students learn best and how we can prepare them for success in college and the future. This plan will be timely, as the world they are about to inherit is more uncertain than it has ever been. Our plan will focus more intentionally on teaching and fostering new skills and dispositions and add new opportunities to our already strong program to help our students better meet these future challenges.

To achieve the vision laid out in the strategic plan, specific priorities will be clearly identified with action steps. These priorities will ground the plan and provide a roadmap. Once the first set of priorities is accomplished, the next set will be identified, helping the School focus on staying true to the vision. This is a multi-year and iterative process. Its very nature encourages self-reflection and continuous fine-tuning along the way.

The end goal is to ensure that our students are well-prepared and that our School is well-positioned to continue to deliver on our compelling mission to inspire students to excel and lead lives of integrity and involvement.

List of 1 frequently asked questions.

Timeline
July 2019
- July 25: Board of Trustee Workshop with Greenwich Leadership Partners
- July 28: Senior Administration Team Workshop with Greenwich Leadership Partners
August 2019
- August 28: Faculty and Staff Workshop
September 2019
- September 26: Board of Trustees Workshop
October 2019
- October 3: Faculty and Staff Workshop
- October 15: Parent Workshop
- October 16: Class of 2020 Workshop
- October 18: Parent Workshop
- October 29: Parents Workshop
- October 28: Forms 3 & 5 Workshop
- October 30: Form 4 Workshop
- Date TBD: Upper Prep-Form 2 Workshop
November 2019
- November 7: Board of Trustees and Leadership Society Workshop
January 2020
- January 6: Professional Development Day on Strategic Vision
- January 30: Board of Trustees approves on “Strategy on One Page”
February 2020
- February 18: Professional Development Day on Strategic Vision
- February 21: Head of School delivers State of the School Address
March 2020
- March 5-6: Administrators' Workshop with Greenwich Leadership Partners
April 2020
- TBD
May 2020
- TBD
June 2020
- TBD
July 2020
- TBD

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Mission

MISSION:
Kingswood Oxford inspires students to excel and to lead lives of integrity and involvement by nourishing their talents in a community of teachers, friends, and families.

CORE VALUES:

Demonstrate honesty, integrity, and respect
Learn with passion and perseverance
Embrace intellectual curiosity
Care beyond self
Take personal responsibility
Work hard, take risks, become involved

MOTTO:
Vincit Qui Se Vincit - "One Conquers By Conquering Oneself"