LAPS News:
Greetings from the Superintendent’s Desk!
As part of our district-wide work on strategic planning, a new tool has been developed with the School Board – Profile of a Graduate. LAPS Profile of a Graduate, 2-19-2020 Working Draft.pdf
Please see below for the draft message and attached is the graphic. After receiving your feedback and making changes, this will be used as a tool for curriculum development and school planning.
Looking Forward in 2020
Profile of a LAHS Graduate
Los Alamos Public Schools
Feb. 19, 2020
With this message, I am reaching out to seek your feedback about our new Profile of a Los Alamos High School Graduate – graphically displayed below. It is designed to help focus on what is best for students and direct resources for building student competencies. LAPS resources include people with time, talent, and dollars – especially teachers, parents and school leaders.
We Value Your Feedback
Your comments about this new profile will be used in updating our LAPS strategic plan priorities and in developing a budget proposal for the 2020-21 school year. Schools today are filled with a myriad of expectations. We have many more needs than can be covered by people and available funds. Thus, we have drafted this graduate profile to help focus on priorities and ensure our students’ success in school, life, work and citizenship.
Your thoughts will help with the ongoing process of making adjustments in our schools, because when you’re in the people business, re-thinking and making modifications is essential. As a continuous improvement school district, LAPS is always working to find what is best for students..
The Graduate Profile as True North
Unlike our mission and vision statements, the LAHS graduate profile specifies the social, emotional, cognitive, personal, and interpersonal competencies that we want our students to have when they graduate. It is a clear visualization of priority goals for teaching and learning that can be easily communicated with students, parents, faculty, and staff to align our collective efforts.
In creating the profile, we began by asking six questions:
Preferred Future…
- What does it mean to “thrive” and experience “equity” in school and in life?
- What are the hopes, aspirations, and dreams that our community has for our young people?
- What are the implications for the design of the learning experiences—and equitable access to those experiences—we provide in our schools?
Know and be able to do…
- Which emotional intelligence competencies are valued most at home, school, and work?
- What are the most important cognitive capacities and skills that should underpin student learning across disciplines and throughout the school experience?
- What interpersonal competencies are the most essential in collaborating and building community for lifelong learning?
High-Level Next Steps
- Facilitate community conversations about the Profile of a Los Alamos High School Graduate
- Make adjustments based upon comments and suggestions
- Align resources so that all Los Alamos High School graduates reflect what is in the profile
- Expected Impacts of the Graduate Profile LAPS Profile of a Graduate, 2-19-2020 Working Draft.pdf
The profile not only establishes agreed-upon expectations and norms of students’ learning, but can also assist in our work to transform the people, systems, structures, and processes that support student learning in the Los Alamos Public Schools.
Constructive suggestions are welcomed and encouraged. Click here to submit comments.
Thank you!
