It is an honor to lead Durham Public Schools. Since my arrival I have been humbled by our community’s support of our schools as well as its insistence upon excellence for all of our students. The children in our 53 schools deserve as outstanding an education as any other child in North Carolina or the nation. Our teachers, staff, and school leaders are eager to provide it. Having a Strategic Plan to focus and unify our efforts is necessary for all of us to meet that goal.

No Strategic Plan can encompass every subject taught, nor every tactic for reducing inequities or mobilizing community support for our students and schools. The intangibles of public education are as important as what we measure in this Strategic Plan: the joy of learning, the building of good citizenship, appreciation of and expertise in the arts, fostering habits of healthy living, and more. We expect our school communities, educators, and staff to continue to innovate; creativity is in our DNA. Having a Strategic Plan ensures that we will not lose sight of our purpose while we continue to expand our horizons.

This will be a living plan. In addition to regular progress updates to our Board, families, and community, we will also assess the goals and strategies themselves. If state policies or standards change, we will adjust the Strategic Plan accordingly and keep moving forward.

We launch this Strategic Plan confident in our community and families, proud of our schools’ commitment to equity and social justice, and excited for our students’ achievement over the next five years.

 
Pascal Mubenga, Ph.D.