Volunteers sought to 'dream BIG' for the GA School District

The Greencastle-Antrim School District is looking for people to help chart the course for its future.

Dr. Lura Hanks, superintendent, has issued a call for community members, families and staff interested in serving on a comprehensive plan advisory council.

“This group will be charged with understanding our GASD Comprehensive Plan and associated goals and to dream BIG as we look into the future of GA,” Hanks explained in an email distributed via the district’s notification system.

The panel will follow in the footsteps of similar groups assembled in recent years to face the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic and create the district health and safety plan, the Destination Design blueprint and the 2022-25 comprehensive plan.

“Our GASD mission states that we are a community invested in empowering our students to strive for excellence to succeed in the future,” wrote Hanks, who will lead the advisory council. “Our vision is that every student will experience personal success and positively impact the world. Our comprehensive plan outlines our path to ensure we achieve our mission and have set very lofty goals for ourselves and our students.”

The four priorities of the comprehensive plan are:

• Proficiency in literacy• Proficiency in mathematics• K-12 multi-tiered system of support framework• Curriculum and assessment

The plan includes the desired outcome in each area, the measurable goal and yearly benchmarks.“It is imperative that council members understand our relentless efforts to maintain an exemplary educational environment for every student and continuously analyze our programs to ensure the pathways to mastery of our five core competencies,” Hanks added.

The core competencies were adopted in early 2021 after the Destination Design team spent months developing a “Portrait of a Graduate” and what’s needed to fulfill that vision:

• Critical thinking and social responsibility• Creativity and innovation• Literacy and communication• Physical and emotional health• General knowledge and academic preparation

Hanks said council members should be “able to have open conversations, consider possibilities, identify potential conflicts, and provide feedback on a variety of topics and initiatives.”

Meetings will be held at least twice a year and more often if needed and subcommittees may be formed for specific areas.

“If you are interested in having an active role in navigating the future of GA, please consider serving on this council as an option,” Hanks said.

Anyone interested in serving on the advisory council is asked to fill out a form by Friday, Feb. 10, at https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSeXJVbrxI3ijGNx3AtWdYwa_IKuIjoT2TvyHygA__7MIxQ8zg/viewform

Members will chosen by the end of the month and meet for the first time in early March. Hanks said the group be “not too big, not too small.”

Shawn Hardy is a reporter with Gannett's Franklin County newspapers in south-central Pennsylvania — the Echo Pilot in Greencastle, The Record Herald in Waynesboro and the Public Opinion in Chambersburg. She has more than 35 years of journalism experience. Reach her at shardy@gannett.com