Vision:

If your school is extremely successful over the next three- five years, how will people describe your
school? Think about the answer as you begin to develop the vision. Here are some samples:

• Our vision is to create a nationally known inner city elementary school that produces major
gains in student achievement, and helps make the neighborhood in which it is located a
much more pleasant place in which to live and work
• Our vision is to create one of the state's most effective schools helping secondary student
who have not succeeded in traditional schools, prepare for, and be accepted into, post-
secondary education
• Our vision is to create an extremely effective k-8 rural school that not only produces very
high levels of student achievement, but also helps train the next generation of rural
teachers.
• Our vision is to create a k-12 school that is highly regarded for its academic excellence, and
for its contribution in actively serving and improving the community in which it operates.

A vision is more than broad, flowery statements. The vision helps people understand how you hope
others will view you, and describes some of your highest priorities.

Mission:

This is how you would describe your school to others. The Northwest Regional Laboratory suggests
that Charter Mission Statements might want to answer three questions:

a. Whom do you seek to serve?

b. What do you seek to accomplish?
c. How will you proceed (what methods will you use).

This means that a mission statement should include:

1. Ages and other characteristics of students you intend serve,

2. Curriculum philosophy and instructional approaches you intend to use
3. An overall goal or two of the school.
4. One or two special features of the school.

Here are some sample missions:

• Our mission is to help urban students who have not succeeded in traditional secondary
schools prepare for work, active citizenship, and post-secondary, using a combination of
classroom work and community internships
• Our mission is to help inner city k-6 students develop higher order thinking skills,
peacemaking skills and leadership abilities in an environment of shared values of
nonviolence, equality and unity, by using a combination of the Core Knowledge Curriculum
and Direct Instruction
• Our mission is to partner effectively with the YMCA so that we help prepare middle school
students to be responsible citizens, good workers and faithful family members
• Our school strives to be a racially and culturally diverse community of students, parents
and staff, dedicated to creating a peaceful environment in each person is treated with
unconditional positive regard and acceptance. Within such an environment, each student,
k-12, will be empowered and inspired to reach his or her full academic, emotional, physical
and spiritual potential (part of the Community of Peace mission)
• The LeCrescent Montessori Academy's mission is to empower preschool through seventh
grade children to unfold their potential as whole and unique persons, and through them
create a peaceful world community.
Charter founders sometimes have found it challenging to decide who to involve, and how long to
take, in developing vision and mission statements. Our general advice is that charter developers:

• Do some initial research in the community to identify unmet needs and wants, before
drafting vision and mission statements. For example, if a relatively small community
already has one or more Montessori elementary schools, it may not make much sense to
propose creating another one. On the other hand, if a community has a number of families
sending children to Montessori nursery schools, but there is no Montessori elementary
school, such a school may well be viable. If a community has a significant number of
students who are not graduating, this may well be a major unmet need that a charter could
meet. Include interviews with key community leaders to get a sense of what needs they see
as unmet.
• Based on your research and your own personal priorities, write a draft mission and vision,
possibly with one or two other people who share your ideas.
• Include at least a handful of other people in reviewing, commenting and refining a draft
vision and mission that one or two people develop.
• Establish a time line for developing the original proposal, including a time by which the
vision and mission are completed. (Allowing a vision/mission discussion to go on too long
can mean that other vital activities are not completed.)