As required via DPS Resolution 4079, a public reporting dashboard will be created to inform the DPS Community on progress, and DPS has been very open to working with the broader DPS Community to create a Community Led, District Supported dashboard. If you have an interest in helping create the dashboard, please email us.
The following provides overviews on the goals along with progress measures:
The Student Experience
Student Experience Goals:
- DPS learners of all identities, ages and abilities feel a strong sense of belonging, are emotionally supported in school, and have the capacity to advocate for themselves and for justice.
- Learners are on track to graduate ready for career, college and life in a post-pandemic global society, with an accelerated trajectory for marginalized students.
- DPS learners grow in and pursue their areas of passion (as athletes, artists, scholars, etc.).
Student Experience Strategies:
The Student Experience Extended Academic Opportunities:
• Create equitable access to rigorous courses and high-interest curriculum, and plan and deliver culturally and linguistically responsive instruction (CLRE) for all grade levels, from our youngest learners through graduation.
• Enhance academic programming in numeracy and literacy, Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Math (STEAM), humanities (including cultural competency and ethnic studies), languages, comprehensive health and financial literacy through partnerships with various community organizations and local colleges and universities to allow for high-quality programming year-round.
• Expand Career and Technical Education by increasing course and pathway diversity, access, and success to ensure students are prepared to compete in the current labor market and high-demand industries.
• Accelerate the growth trajectory of marginalized students by developing, implementing and improving high-quality specialized plans for students of color, multilingual learners, students with disabilities, and other marginalized groups.
Whole Child: Strengthen the implementation of a comprehensive system for supporting the whole child, including:
• Robust Multi-Tiered Systems of Support (MTSS).
• Transformative Social-Emotional and Academic Learning (TSEAL).
• Culturally affirming mental health resources and support.
• Student-led spaces to build a sense of belonging and social identity (e.g. affinity groups).
Pursuit of Passion:
• Increase access to enrichment and extracurricular learning opportunities for every learner, with a focus on marginalized students.
• Streamline and simplify enrollment processes for the enrichment and extracurricular activities and ensure families have the resources and tools they need to enroll their students in these experiences.
• Provide student leaders, performers and athletes with updated facilities, developmental programming, and highly trained coaches, teachers and guides.
• Develop partnerships and programs to offer year-round opportunities for learner directed development, growth and competition across the city and state.
Progress Measures:
Improve Student Experience Index average by 10 percentage points.
Student experience index will be developed from surveys for grades 3-12 and supplemented with focus groups and interviews to measure:
- Student health and sense of safety.
- Students feeling welcome and a sense of belonging.
- Students feeling a sense of cultural and linguistic pride.
- Student engagement.
- Student agency.
- Student attendance.
Improve Grade-Level Achievement average by 10 percentage points. Data available
Improve Post-Pandemic Workforce Readiness average on each of these measures by 10 percentage points.
- Four-year graduation rate.
- Five-year graduation rate.
- Students graduating with college and apprenticeship and internship credit hours.
- Students eligible for the Seal of Biliteracy at graduation.
- Students graduating with industry certificates.
Improve participation average in passion-sustaining programming in and beyond the classroom by 10 percentage points.
Participation will be measured by:
- Students receiving robust diverse programming during the school day.
- Students participating in enrichments and/or extracurriculars outside of the school day.
The Adult Experience
Adult Experience Goals:
- Every member of Team DPS is an educator: each member of Team DPS sees themselves and each other as valued contributors and works together to achieve our vision that Every Learner Thrives.
- Our workforce reflects the diverse identities of our learners so our students and families see themselves reflected in our schools and among our leadership.
- Families of all identities participate in making decisions that affect their child’s educational experience.
Adult Experience Strategies:
Culture of Collaboration:
• Build a mission-driven culture with reaffirmed values that recognize, honor and humanize our team members and unify and invigorate us around our collective actions.
• Develop structures and routines that foster a systemic shift to increase collaboration and continuous improvement within our organization, including sharing of best practices across schools of all governance types.
• Celebrate school and student successes to elevate impactful and transformative practices across district and school support.
Developing and Reinforcing Mindsets:
• Build, reinforce and hold each other accountable to asset-based mindsets and practices that embrace diversity and advance equity and inclusion through professional learning, leadership development opportunities, and other culture-building experiences.
• Establish a mindset of continuous improvement by fostering a culture of feedback, reflection through coaching, and growth through intentional development.
• Recruit and retain a high quality workforce that is driven by a deep desire for equity in our schools and broader system.
Diverse Workforce:
• Strengthen and expand initiatives to recruit, hire, retain and advance team members of marginalized identities at all levels of the organization so that students see themselves reflected in our schools and among our leadership.
• Ensure our team members receive total compensation packages (benefits, market adjustments, etc.) at or above market rate, as compared to other Denver metro districts.
Engagement and Communication:
• Deepen the way we engage, educate and communicate to encourage greater dialogue among our entire DPS community, with a focus on outreach to families and community members of marginalized identities.
• Strengthen and establish advisory groups to increase the voice of marginalized groups.
• Collaborate with community organizations to elevate community needs, aspirations and Solutions.
Progress Measures:
Improve Culture Vitality Index by 10 percentage points:
Culture Vitality Index will be developed from surveys that measure:
- Equity mindsets in employees.
- How valued employees feel.
- Employee perception of collaboration.
- Employee perception of trust.
- Employee perception of support.
Continuous, positive movement toward a more reflective workforce:
- Annual retention rates of staff of all identities.
- Measures of recruitment and hiring efforts for staff with diverse identities.
- 10 percentage point increase in students report in surveys that they see themselves reflected by the adults in their schools.
Improve participation of families of marginalized identities in district decision-making by 10 percentage points.
Participation will be measured by:
- Event attendance.
- Survey responses.
- Parent-teacher conferences attendance.
- Other measures to be determined.
Improve Family Experience Index for families of all identities by 10 percentage points:
Family Experience Index will be derived from surveys and supplemented with focus groups and interviews to measure:
- How welcomed families feel.
- Families being informed about their student(s)’ progress.
- Families’ ability to participate in decision making at the district and school levels.
The System Experience
System Experience Goals:
- DPS disrupts, dismantles and redesigns systems and practices for equity and Excellence.
- DPS provides resources and services equitably and transparently, as directed by the strategic roadmap and consistent with the Ends Statements set by the Board of Education.
- DPS is recognized locally, regionally and nationally as a leader in practices for equity and sustainability.
System Experience Strategies:
- DPS disrupts, dismantles and redesigns systems and practices for equity and excellence.
- DPS provides resources and services equitably and transparently, as directed by the strategic roadmap and consistent with the Ends Statements set by the Board of Education.
- DPS is recognized locally, regionally and nationally as a leader in practices for equity and sustainability.
Systems for Equity
• Establish regular routines for auditing equity in operational and academic systems, including sustainability practices. This includes but is not limited to our transportation, enrollment, educator evaluation and resource allocation systems and practices. Share results publicly and take action based on findings.
• Develop and implement a holistic data culture and infrastructure in the pursuit of Equity.
• Foster and incorporate student, family, and community voice and leadership in the development of equitable systems.
• Increase student and family interest in DPS through programming, choice, and Communication.
Conditions for Transparent Decision-Making:
• Increase access to clear and transparent information about the characteristics and effectiveness of different schools, in addition to the state School Performance Framework.
• Develop and implement a unified measurement strategy, including assessments and surveys, to support data-informed decision-making and progress monitoring at the district, school and classroom levels.
Partnership and Influence:
• Partner with external organizations in a collective effort to meet community needs and complement community assets, including but not limited to the launch of community Hubs.
• Publicly advocate for the dismantling of systems of oppression at the local, state and national levels.
Coherence:
• Ensure coherence in annual planning and goal-setting processes and timeline at the district, team and school levels.
• Align district resources and central team functions to the priorities of the strategic roadmap.
• Define school-based flexibility by school governance type.
Progress Measures:
- Ten systems audited for equity
- Six community hubs operating to meet community needs.
Implementation measures
- Budgets are aligned to the priorities named in the strategic roadmap.
- Creation of annual targets that align with the strategic roadmap.
- School-based strategic plans have connections to the strategic roadmap, District Annual Targets and Board Ends Statements.