NEWARK, NJ — Superintendent Roger Leon and the Newark Board of Education released an unprecedented 10-year strategic plan titled, “The Next Decade: 2020-30,” in September. The unveiling of the strategic plan sets the district’s sights on the bold creation of a new educational ecosystem that delivers a world-class education to every child in the city of Newark. This plan is a comprehensive roadmap that guides the priorities and strategies that will best help the district fulfill its mission and vision during the next 10 years. Developed collaboratively by partners, community leaders, elected officials, board members, parents, students, district leadership and educators, “The Next Decade: 2020-30” marks the beginning of full local control, which was returned to the district July 1.
“This strategic plan reflects the best thinking of our community’s leaders regarding the structure and function of our city’s public education institutions at this time, upon their return to local control after years of state operation, and for years to come,” Leon said. “Our vision is that in 10 years our schools will be equal in quality to the best anywhere and all our students will achieve to their fullest potential. This strategic plan will help guide us there.”
“This strategic plan weaves together the resources, organizations and stakeholders in our city to ensure that we all play our part and hold each other accountable for creating the schools our students deserve,” Mayor Ras Baraka said. “As the mayor and an educator myself, I commit to mobilizing the city’s resources in partnership with NPS in order to bring this plan to life. I look forward to working with the district to make Newark the nation’s exemplar for culturally responsive and equitable education that empowers our students to live and lead in the 21st century.”
“The Next Decade: 2020-30” strategic planning process spanned two years and included the implementation of the Strategic Planning Advisory Committee, nine stakeholder roundtables, and three working groups that focused on mission, vision, core values, a theory of action and equity. The district hosted 75 meetings involving 100 partner organizations and more than 1,000 participants to assess data, identify root causes and gaps, and develop strategies. The strategic planning process set higher expectations, addressed cultural responsiveness, increased transparency, focused on equity and fostered collaboration as these themes echoed from session to session and stakeholder to stakeholder. These, and other themes, are integrated into the priorities and strategies in the strategic plan. “The Next Decade: 2020-30” builds on the district’s one-year strategic plan, “NPS Clarity 2020,” which was implemented during the 2019-2020 school year. The development of “NPS Clarity 2020,” and now “The Next Decade: 2020-30,” is an example of how one strategic plan builds from earlier ones.
For more information, visit www.nps.k12.nj.us.
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