News and Notes:  News Release
October 4, 2007

Topeka: New KLFA vision and mission statements adopted following August Retreat and October meeting

Education in the 21st century encompasses more than the three Rs. Students must be prepared for success in a job, training program or college when they graduate from high school; develop the skills for life-long learning; and learn to get along in an increasingly diverse and interconnected world. To help the Kansas Learning First Alliance better focus on those necessities, members worked through a six-week process that allowed for the development of recommended new vision and mission statements. Approved at the Oct. 4 meeting for organizational consideration were the following:

• KLFA’s vision is an outstanding system of public education that empowers each student to succeed in the 21st century.
   
• KLFA’s mission is to unite the education community to improve our outstanding public education system, pre-K through higher education, to empower each Kansan to succeed in the diverse, interdependent world of the 21st century.

Although a firm time line has not been set, it is expected these recommendations will be adopted at either the January or March meetings. The purpose of revisiting the core organizational beliefs and values was to help ensure KLFA stays focused on appropriate, attainable and action-oriented activities.

Since its inception in 1999, KLFA, an affiliate of the Learning First Alliance, which is composed of 17 national education organizations, has used three working groups to achieve its mission. The three groups are working toward improving student achievement; strengthening the professional development of educators; and engaging the public in school improvement and student achievement efforts. To focus their work, three general goals offer guidance. They are:

• KLFA will broadly disseminate our work to influence practitioners.
• KLFA will increase its visibility among policy makers.
• KLFA will strengthen and increase its organizational capacity.

The three workgroups spent much of the meeting discussing their efforts in the context of the new vision and mission statements. Discussion of 21st century learning skills was at the heart of much of the group work. All three groups expressed eagerness to participate in the 21st century learning initiative currently being considered as a state effort by the governor’s office. Disseminating information about the needs for upgrading curriculum, instruction and assessment to better fit a rapidly changing world, particularly in the technological arena, was seen by all three groups as essential to moving Kansas education forward.

For more information on KLFA, visit its Web site at www.klfa.org.  The next meeting will be January 15 at the Kansas Association of School Boards.