Concrete School District working on strategic plan
CONCRETE - The Concrete School District has had the community weigh in on building the district's next strategic plan.
Planning began in February and community outreach began in March.
Eleven listening sessions, including in-person and virtual options, were then held in which 161 people took part, and 75 submitted responses through emails and surveys.
That feedback, along with district and state data, is the foundation for the work the district's Strategic Planning Committee is doing to create a strategic plan that will cover the next five years.
The committee includes students, staff, parents, community members, local employers, local organizations, four teachers and two school board members.
The district's strategic planning process is led by Mary Fertakis, a former Tukwila School Board member and past president of Washington State School Directors' Association who now serves as the association's leadership development consultant.
Fertakis said an important part of strategic planning is community engagement, because the people involved are taxpayers, parents, teachers and various other stakeholders whose opinions are crucial to consider.
"There's some very strong community pride and investment in schools (in Concrete,) so it's important that their voices are part of this process and reflected in what the district is going to be doing going forward for the next five years," Fertakis said.
The strategic plan will be presented to the Concrete School Board on June 16 and is set to be approved June 18.
The Strategic Planning Committee met four times. The first meeting was about compiling feedback and data and asking students and staff questions about the district.
The second meeting was about core values, the third meeting about vision and mission statements, and the final meeting Wednesday about pulling it all together.
VIDEO: Concrete strategic planning meeting
The Concrete School District Strategic Planning Committee finishes the last in-person meeting Wednesday developing the strategic plan.
Participants in the listening sessions believed the district's core values should be about belonging, resourcefulness, growth and alignment.
The drafted mission statement, which needs board approval, is: "The Concrete School District is dedicated to fostering whole student development through authentic, purposeful learning experiences within a welcoming community."
On Wednesday, four focus areas were discussed, including resource stewardship, teaching and learning, student and staff well-being, and family and community engagement.
Common themes discussed were about wanting better district communication, prioritizing extracurricular activities, having opportunities to celebrate culture, and getting students and staff recognition for their accomplishments. Participants wanted students to be high achievers and to feel as if they belong.
At the end of Wednesday's meeting, participants said the experience was empowering and made them feel optimistic about the future of the district.
A detailed account of each stage of the process is available on the district's website.
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This story was originally published June 5, 2026 at 7:06 AM.