As part of their mission of “Empowering Learners,” officials from the Lamar County School District have implemented a new five-year strategic plan that will set the standards for the district over the next half-decade.
The measure was adopted at the December 12 meeting of the district’s board of trustees to update the last strategic plan – which ran from 2017 to 2022 – in particular in the midst of recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic. Development of the plan is being handled by Hattiesburg-based Impact Education Group, a group of professionals in the education arena who are dedicated to improving schools and increasing student achievement.
“Coming out of COVID, we are actually in line for another updated strategic plan,” district superintendent Steven Hampton said. “Seeing as how we’ve had so many changes due to COVID – with the implementation of technology, the change in the school calendar, the change in the (redistricting) makeup of some of our schools as far as the elementary schools in the Oak Grove area – we just felt like it was a great time, as we’re back to somewhat of a normalcy now.
“(This is the time) to get back in and really do a strategic plan to get all the stakeholders involved, and where our district wants to be in five years. (We need to see) what direction we need to go in, what our strengths are, what our weaknesses are, and how we move forward.”
Part of the plan will entail meeting with various officials to come up with certain academic measures.
“I don’t want to sit here and say it’s going to be A, B, C and D, because that would be just what my perceptions are,” Hampton said. “I want to be able to get our stakeholders – as far as our building-level administration, our teachers, employees, students, parents and community members – around the same table and let’s come up with those things together.
“Academics is going to be a part of that, (as well as) facilities, personnel – as far as high-quality teachers – anything in operations, as far as our school district, could be involved in that as well. Transportation, food services – all those things. It’s just going to be sitting down and prioritizing what we do good and what we need to work on.”
District officials will start the planning process in January, once school resumes after the holiday break. By mid-January, they will send out a survey to all stakeholders informing them of the process.
“Our employees, parents, students, will take the survey to begin that process,” Hampton said. “So we would hope that we could get that plan – and we’re talking about bringing people into meetings and things like that – hopefully by spring break.
“(That way) we can start communicating and implementing that for the next school year, to go ahead and start getting that out and having that in place for the beginning of the 2023-2024 school year.”
Impact Education Group’s leadership team includes managing partner Scott Lewis, partner James Hutto, partner Kevin Lewis, chief operating officer Susie Dillard and chief development officer Tom Clark. Consultants include Terry Ingram, Lynn Brewer, Ann Sullivan, Malisha Siders, Tammy Hubbard, Mary Webb, David White, Elizabeth Repsher, Debbye Reed, Si Thompson, Kathy Stennett and Paula Thomspon.
For more information on the group, which is located on Old Highway 11 in Hattiesburg, call (601) 271-7929.
