Whole-Child Purpose

First and foremost, a school is grounded in its purpose — implicit or explicit. It sets the stage for school design by anchoring goals and priorities, creating shared direction, and defining what success will look like.

A whole-child vision that expands upon the academic purpose of school to paint a picture of holistic, developmental outcomes for students becomes the driving force for whole-child design and continuous improvement. As community members co-create this vision, the process seeks to address inequity as is invites those the system is meant to serve into the conversation that shapes the system itself. It is grounded in the specific context of the school community – its history and culture(s), assets and challenges, needs, and dreams for its students.

Beyond just being put on paper, the school community has deeply internalized the vision, and it meaningfully shapes all aspects of practice, school design, culture and decision making.