Chris Wheedleton for Dorchester County School Board - District 5
Key Priorities
Put Students First
Give Educators The Tools They Need
Give Educators The Tools They Need
This includes making sure our students are safe, the culture and conditions for learning are the continuous goal, and the well-being of our students is paramount.
Give Educators The Tools They Need
Give Educators The Tools They Need
Give Educators The Tools They Need
Real and consistent collaboration that enables them to share and be heard, and more importantly, see action and outcomes are critical to giving Educators what they need.
Get the Entire Community Involved
Give Educators The Tools They Need
Get the Entire Community Involved
Students need to know what is available to them outside of school. Whether they want to choose a career right out of school, or additional education after graduating from DCPS, it is an important part of our role as educators and members of the community surrounding them to help students start the pathways to success for them.
Put Students First
There is a lot that goes into this. This includes making sure our students are safe, the culture and conditions for learning are the continuous goal, and the well-being of our students is paramount. The Board and District leadership have worked to implement a comprehensive strategy of collaboration with law enforcement, staff, and community stakeholders. We regularly work together to address and mitigate potential threats, creating a secure learning environment where students can thrive without compromise.
By prioritizing students, we can assure parents, students, and educators that our schools are the places they are supposed to be for learning and growth. This includes engaging, listening, and putting in front of them opportunities to explore everything available to them and creating pathways to success for all.
Give Educators The tools they need
While there are real budgetary constraints that school districts regularly are challenged to balance, there are opportunities for us to engage and listen to Educators share what they need to be able to thrive in their important roles of helping create the conditions for our students to grow. Professional support and compensation, continued education and development, and the best resources that we can supply for them to do their jobs are basic foundations that our Educators should be able to expect. Real and consistent collaboration that enables them to share and be heard, and more importantly, see action and outcomes are critical to giving Educators what they need. Educators include Teachers AND every trusted adult in our community that are part of the pathways to success for our students – we need ALL who want to be part of that to get involved.
My experience in business, education, and community development has shown me that to achieve excellence in any environment, we must know where we are, before we can set realistic goals for where we want to be. I have worked with our DCPS Executive Team to implement a robust Dashboard process to show clearly where we are, analyze what fact-based data is telling us, and plan our actions forward based on the story embedded within each piece of information.
Get the Entire community involved
Students need to know what is available to them outside of school. Whether they want to choose a career right out of school, or additional education, it is an important part of our role as educators and members of the community surrounding them to help students find the pathways to success for them. This requires engagement, collaboration, and clear communication with all members of our community including businesses, organizations, and supports that are available to our students. Apprenticeships are finally being seen as the solutions that they can be for young people to explore and learn what sparks them and helps them to figure out their best path. This also helps develop the talent pipeline for our local businesses to thrive.
This involves creating avenues for open dialogue, including forums, town halls, and collaborative initiatives. We can build a foundation that connects every stakeholder and enhances the overall educational experience for our students in Dorchester County.
