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Academies of Raytown

Strategic Steering Committee

October 22, 2025

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Meeting Outcomes

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• Academies of Raytown Journey
• Purpose of Strategic Steering Committee
• Master Plan/Tactic Teams Review
• How can your business get involved?
• Upcoming Events

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Community-Connected Partnership

Dr. Penelope Martin-Knox

Superintendent

Raytown Quality Schools

Jeff Hirst

President - Raytown Area

Chamber of Commerce and Tourism

Our Why

# RQSFORWARD

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Raytown Quality Schools is committed to transforming the high school experience to ensure every student is academically sound, reflective, able to relate, contributes to their community, and has the professional skills and real world experiences to succeed in a high demand/high wage career.

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Strategic Steering Committee

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Our Vision

Phase 1

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The internal and external stakeholders were invited to spend time with the Ford NGL coaches to explore the idea of working together for a community-connected transformation for

Raytown Quality Schools

January - May 2024

Phase 2

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The Raytown Quality Schools Community (both internal and external stakeholders) began to mobilize, educate, and vision what the transformation could look like

June 2024 - February 2025

Phase 3

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Leadership, including internal and external partners, ideate and craft the systems, structures and processes that will be needed to support the community-connected vision for transformation

March - June 2025

Why an Academy Model?

Small personalized environment

Partner with businesses

Applied learning opportunities

Rigorous

College & Career

21st Century Skills

• Reflective
• Able to Relate
• Contributors
• Professional
• Academically Sound

RQS Profile of a Learner

Academies & Pathways of Raytown

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Freshman Academy

25-26

Class of 2029

Health & Human Services

26-27

Business, Innovation & Industry

26-27

Healthcare

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Human Services

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First Responders

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Environmental Science

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Business & Marketing

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Arts, Entertainment & Design

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Manufacturing & Industry Trades

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Information Technology

What are examples of the high wage, high demand careers?

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Why a Freshman Academy?

Transition

Exploration

Why Freshman Academy?

25-26=Phase 4!

Phase 4

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The community moves from visioning and planning to implementation by (re)distributing internal and external stakeholders into the newly created structures to carry out the plan for transformation

July 2025-Present

Community-Connected Partnership

Dr. Penelope Martin-Knox

Superintendent

Raytown Quality Schools

Jeff Hirst

President - Raytown Area

Chamber of Commerce and Tourism

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Academies of Raytown

Strategic Steering Committee Purpose:

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The purpose of the Academies of Raytown Strategic Steering Committee (SSC) is to serve as a collaborative body that provides guidance, oversight, and input on the district’s Academies of Raytown Master Plan goals and initiatives. The committee meets twice a year to ensure that all decisions align with the vision of academic excellence, student success, and community engagement. By fostering diverse perspectives and data-driven decision-making, the committee helps shape and refine long-term strategies, monitor progress, and address challenges, ensuring that the Academies of Raytown remains responsive to the evolving needs of students, staff, and the broader community.

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Academies of Raytown

Master Plan/Tactic Plans Overview

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• Profile of a Learner (JB)
• Engaging Teaching and Learning (TB)
• Guaranteed Career Experiences (KD)
• Academies of Raytown (AMc)
• Governance Structures (CG)
• Communications (MW)

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Tactic Team: Profile of a Learner

Purpose:

Identify developmentally appropriate benchmarks that align with RQS “Profile of a Learner” characteristics while engaging with community stakeholders

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Priority 1: Utilizing the five pillars of a Profile of a Learner, define the characteristics with a common language for grade level appropriateness.

• Committee will develop grade level benchmarks that align with the RQS Profile of a Learner pillars.
• Distribute the Benchmarks and and grading guide for teachers

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Priority 3: Develop a communication plan to implement the Profile Of a Learner and engage adult stakeholders.

• Create talking points for staff, parents and community

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Tactic Team:

Engaging Teaching & Learning

• Purpose of the Tactic: To empower educators through interdisciplinary, collaborative teams that enhance on-grade-level academic skills, essential life skills, and workplace competencies within high-demand, high-wage career pathways for all students, while ensuring student voice and choice in the design and implementation of their learning.
• Develop Staff Understanding/Implementation of PBL and Interdisciplinary Planning
• Expand Career Exploration Opportunities in the K-8 Setting
• Develop Structured Student Leadership Opportunities for 9-12
• Layer the RQS Profile of a Learner into Instruction

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Tactic Team:

Guaranteed Career Experiences

• Purpose of this Tactic: Identify relevant, real-world learning experiences for students 9-12 delivered through the development of a school and community partnership system and professional development for ALL students/stakeholders.
• Implement Freshman Academy Guaranteed Experiences
• Career Expo Fair
• Guest Speaker Series
• Freshman Academy College Week
• Execute AoR Seven Step Partnership System
• Powerful Partnerships Team
• Develop a collaborative professional learning plan engaging all G.C.E stakeholders.

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Tactic Team: Academies of Raytown

• Purpose of this Tactic: Develop and align sequential courses of study within each pathway from high school to post-secondary, using workforce data to enable students to pursue their career interests and establish processes to evaluate pathway effectiveness and potential changes
• Priority 1 - Align resources and staff to prepare for implementing a Freshman Academy (9) for all students
• Priority 2 - Align resources and staff to prepare for the career academies (10, 11, 12)
• Academy Selection Timeline for Teachers and Staff
• Academy Selection Timeline for Students
• Priority 3 - Create a process to align academies and pathways in our course catalog (RQS Career & Educational Planning Guide)
• Academies of Raytown Course Sequence
• Master Scheduling Implications
• Priority 4 - Create a process and procedure for annual pathway review
• Get Involved - Dr. Cheryl Reichert (cheryl.reichert@raytownschools.org) - RQS Pathway and Partnership Coordinator - curriculum development, pathway advisors, host student interns/job shadowing

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DRAFT

DRAFT

Tactic Team: Governance Structures

• Purpose of the Tactic: To establish systems, structures, practices and provide stakeholder collaboration to guide, support, and sustain the career academy transformation in Raytown.
• AoR Executive Team (meets 2x a month re: Freshman Academy)
• Goal: As compared to 24-25 Freshman Class (Class of 2028), increase 25-26 Freshman Class (Class of 2029) 90/90 Attendance Rate by 5%, decrease Office Discipline Referrals by 20%, and decrease D/F rate in core classes by 10%
• AoR Operational Advisory Board (meets once a month re: AoR Launch)
• Goal: 90% of Tactical Plan Outcomes will be marked as "completed" during 25-26
• AoR Strategic Steering Committee (meets twice a year)
• Goal: TBD

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Tactic Team: Communications

• Logo Creation
• Freshman Academy Logos have been created and are being used at both buildings.
• Academies of Raytown logo options have been created and students are voting on the logo they like best.
• Freshman Academy Promotion
• Freshman Academy has been promoted multiple times so far this year through multiple different channels including The C-2 View Digital Monthly Newsletter, Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok.
• The communications team aided in creating graphics for the guaranteed career experiences at both schools to be shared with students and families through the appropriate channels and serve as a guide as we continue to grow the academies and move students through the program.
• The communications department also aided in creating a flyer for the Academies of Raytown Career Expo taking place on October 27th. This flyer has been posted on social media and included in the September and October edition of the C-2 View digital newsletter.
• Next Steps
• Gearing up for the academies designation ceremony on November 19!

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Powerful Partnerships Next Steps

Moving beyond prescribed experiences: How can we partner with industry to integrate into our academies?

• Students
• Teachers
• Industry

Aligning the partnerships to the best fit: How do the industry partners want to engage and what makes sense for academies?

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Working on Partnership Agreements: We will be asking industry partners to commit to at least 2 experiences per year to be an official partner, so we can plan and align the work

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Leveraging our network: How can we use our own network to bring more partners to the table to benefit our community and our schools?

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Upcoming Events

Freshman Academy Career Expo Fair - October 27th

• Location: Raytown High School

Commitment to Graduate Ceremonies

• Raytown High - November 4th
• Raytown South High - November 5th

Guest Speaker Series - November 4th - November 20th

Freshman Academy College Week - March 2nd - March 6th

Academy Reveal Ceremony - 2nd Semester

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Academies of Raytown

Strategic Steering Committee

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Next Meeting: March 25, 2026