trevordayschool

Jim Collins, the author of Good to Great, has often observed that believing an institution is a "good" place is the enemy of its becoming truly "great." Every great institution—whether a business, government agency, nonprofit, or school—becomes great only through disciplined planning and the execution that flows from a clear, discernible, yet flexible plan. Such a plan defines future directions, sets guideposts to assess progress, and offers an opportunity for regular review. It is, essentially, a roadmap for people and programs. e strategic direction set by a school's Board of Trustees, for example, will be reflected in the goals and objectives pursued by the school's administration and faculty in the following years. Such has been Trevor's history of strategic planning—from a small, unique day school program to the fully developed Pre-K–Grade 12 independent school that we are today. Careful strategic planning provided for the school's growth in the past. e last strategic process led to our new and renovated buildings, the envy of schools throughout New York City. Now it is time to renew the process, once again turning our focus to the future. e school's mission, the essential and guiding principles that define Trevor, will form the core of this action. e Trevor Board of Trustees has begun the process of envisioning our future. A small steering committee, chaired by Board Vice President MaryKay Coyle, and assisted by trustees Dave Morgan, Olaf Olafsson, Sally Rocker, and Scott Reisinger, worked this summer to interview consultants to help lead the process. Recently the Board hired Stephen DiCicco and Mathew Heersche of Educational Directions Incorporated, each of whom has developed scores of strategic plans for independent schools in the U.S. and abroad. e Board will convene for a daylong retreat on Saturday, January 23rd, to discuss the major strategic and generative challenges facing Trevor, in the context of our school as well as education more broadly. e results of these discussions will be consolidated. Stephen and Mathew will next elicit community feedback that they will provide to an expanded Strategic Planning Committee—including faculty, parents, and friends of the school. After further discussion and analysis, the final Strategic Plan will be presented to the Trevor community at our State of the School Meeting in late spring. e Board is committed to an inclusive process, and we believe the school is poised for great success given the engagement of our community in crucial endeavors over the last two years, including our head of school search, marketing efforts, and the recent NYSAIS self-study. We have been forward thinking in collecting data that elucidates the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats facing Trevor, and we are calling on the community for further insight and feedback. Undoubtedly our major area of focus will be "people and programs," the very core of what our school is about. We are also committed to creating an even more sustainable future in a school characterized by academic and personal excellence, diversity, lifelong learning, leadership, and global citizenship. We look forward to updating you every step of the way. Th oughts ON Strategic Planning Scott R. Reisinger, Head of School, and MaryKay Coyle, Board Vice President Th e s c h o o l ' s m i s s i o n , the essential and guiding principles that define Trevor,will form the core of this action.

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