“The test of a leader is taking the vision from me to we.”
– John C. Maxwell, Leadership expert

In the Deerfield Public Schools – District 109, one of the “BIG 5” initiatives under which we operate is Organizational Culture. Our unwavering focus on employee engagement and satisfaction is demonstrated in our annual measure of culture and the individual school action planning around measures of culture at each school. It’s also felt each and every time one walks the halls of our schools or interacts with our amazing teachers, support staff, administrators, board members, students, and members of the community. With a strong organizational culture reflecting intentional relationship building, our District is humbled and proud of the three year culture trends (see below from a recent Board presentation from one of our research partners):

All school teams deserve a lot of credit for identifying culture dimensions in need of attention. It is essential to replicate that which works and to remediate that which does not! Our aim is success for all students and staff and community. Our Board of Education continues to lead strategically and govern from “the balcony” allowing staff to do the necessary work on behalf of student learning. As a leadership team we have been in office for 26 months and a tremendous amount of positive growth and change is underway. I cannot thank our administrators, teachers, support staff members, students and board members enough for their dedication to intentional and deliberate excellence!

At the most recent school board meeting I shared a highlight of where we have been, where we are and where we are going organizationally. See below for details: