DERRY — Over the past year, a School Board committee has been seeking input from parents, teachers and community members on long-range goals for the district.

This week, the board unveiled the three major goals the district will be focusing on as part of that strategic plan. (See related story, Page B1.)

Those three goals focus on having all students learn at a higher level, providing a safe and positive learning environment, and increasing community involvement.

“We held six focus groups with parents, teachers, administrators, the School Board and local officials,” said board member Ken Linehan. In addition to the focus groups, the board’s strategic planning committee gathered information from surveys on the district website.

Along with help from the New England School Development Council, the planning committee and the School Board transferred that information into a series of long-range goals.

“In the coming months, we’ll be developing action plans to achieve the specific goals in the plan,” said Linehan.

The strategic plan is an evergreen document that can be updated and changed over time, according to Linehan.

“We can review it every year to see that it is current and reflects what we want to achieve,” he said.

Each of the three goals include a number of action items.

For the goal of having all students achieve at a higher level, some of the action items include having high quality teachers in each classroom and integrating technology throughout the curriculum.

Linehan said the goal also establishes that the district will continue to work closely with Pinkerton Academy and all other high school facilities to support all learners from kindergarten through graduation.

For the goal of providing a safe and positive atmosphere, the plan calls for making sure all school facilities are well-maintained and that the building structures support the implementation of technology into the schools.

“We also want to foster awareness of sustainability and environmental awareness,” said Linehan, whether it is through recycling, composting projects, or looking for ways to save money on energy. “A lot of this has already been going on in the schools, but it is important for us to embrace it.”

When it comes to increasing community involvement, Linehan said it’s important for the district to continue to foster communication between the schools and parents.

“Parents are the backbone of the schools, and they have always supported us,” he said.

The district also needs to continue to look at opportunities to engage with the wider Derry community, according to Linehan.

As the School Board and its committees work on making the goals and action items a reality, board member Dan McKenna said the strategic planning committee will provide monthly progress reports.

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Adam Swift may be reached at aswift@newstote.com.