STRATEGIC PLAN 2023-2028 St. Catherine’s Montessori
Dear St. Catherine’s Community,
Our Strategic Plan is the culmination of 10 months of listening and reflecting. During the process, we partnered with the consulting firm Mission & Data, which guided us as we collected and evaluated the information that led to our conclusions. The Strategic Plan presented us with a unique opportunity to hear from all community members, including students, parents, alumni, guides, staff, administrators, and the Board of Directors. We engaged with you through a series of surveys, focus groups, and conversations. We then analyzed and sorted your input into areas of strengths, opportunities, and aspirations to arrive at the strategic priorities you consider most important for St. Catherine’s Montessori.
A strategic plan is a living document. We are committed to ensuring that this plan continues to reflect our aspirations and our needs. Most importantly, this plan should serve to catalyze action. To position us for a vibrant future, we invite every parent, employee, community member, and friend of the school to work together towards the goals in these pages. This plan enables our community to channel our shared passion for the Catholic Montessori education we provide at St. Catherine’s.
The goals and action plan we outline in this document are the result of a thoughtful and inclusive process. We are grateful for everyone’s engagement and participation in helping us define our future together.
Approved by the Board of Directors in June of 2023, the strategic plan we present today harnesses the insights, experiences, and aspirations of the St. Catherine’s community. We believe this roadmap will inform and inspire the future of our school!
Kathy Hijazi Chad Mavity Denise Stasio Lina Delgado Strategic Plan Co-Chair Strategic Plan Co-Chair Board President Head of School
Our Philosophy
The complementary messages of our Montessori and Catholic heritages are most simply summarized by our guiding philosophy: “Bringing Wisdom to Light.” As an AMI school, St. Catherine’s follows the curriculum and traditions established by Dr. Maria Montessori more than 100 years ago. More than simply a method of education, the Montessori approach fosters the development of the whole child— intellectually, physically, socially, morally, and spiritually. As a Catholic community, St. Catherine’s additionally nurtures children’s spiritual development so that each student may experience the presence of God both individually and in community.
MISSION
As a Catholic Montessori school, St. Catherine’s is dedicated to an educational experience which awakens in our students the awareness of their gifts and responsibilities as individuals in relationship with Jesus Christ and as stewards of the global community.
VISION
Montessori
FAITH & VALUES
Catholic & Dominican
Montessori Vision
Dr. Montessori frequently described the inner wisdom inherent in all human beings and envisioned education as a spiritual mission to unleash each child’s inner potential. In The Secret of Childhood she writes, “Our care of the child should be governed, not by the desire to make [them] learn things, but by the endeavor always to keep burning within [them] that light which is called intelligence.” Montessori believed that, properly nurtured, each child’s wisdom radiates outward to create a more peaceful world.
Catholic Faith & Dominican Values
Our Catholic vocation is to nurture and reveal the Spirit of God within each child. Revealing one’s inner light is an aspect of service to God outlined in the Gospel of Matthew. “You are the light of the world. A city set on a mountain cannot be hidden. Nor do they light a lamp and then put it under a bushel basket; it is set on a lampstand, where it gives light to all in the house. Just so, your light must shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your heavenly Father” (Matthew 5:14-16).
PHILOSOPHY Bringing Wisdom to Light
Our Goals
Enhance Montessori Excellence
Support Our Catholic Faith and Dominican Values
Strengthen Community Outreach and Partnerships
Capitalize on Our Upper School
Steward Our Future
Enhance Montessori Excellence
Goal Statement: Guide students of all ages through an authentic AMI Montessori education and model Montessori best practices for all stakeholders.
Attract mission-aligned families and educate current and prospective parents on the breadth and purpose of our Montessori curriculum and programs
Recruit and retain AMI talent, and provide targeted Montessori training and professional development for faculty, staff, and administration
Support faculty and staff collaboration to promote a shared understanding of the guide and student work at each level
Position St. Catherine’s as a national leader in Montessori education spanning the entire educational arc
Support Our Catholic Faith and Dominican Values
Goal Statement: Create a shared understanding of our Catholic faith and Dominican values among all stakeholders to guide our mission-aligned educational and community experiences.
Educate the SCM community on the history and impact of our Dominican values and how they inform our purpose and philosophy
Strengthen our Dominican Catholic curriculum and programming across all levels
Provide professional development for faculty and staff to support the teaching of Catholic and Dominican values in our classrooms
Engage in intentional environmental stewardship in alignment with our Dominican principles
Strengthen Community Outreach and Partnerships
Goal Statement: Fully integrate community engagement and service opportunities into the St. Catherine’s experience for all stakeholders.
Continue to nurture the SCM community through intentional family and alumni engagement to deepen connections with our school
Foster an active culture of engagement and service both within and outside the SCM community
Build and maintain a network of mission-aligned partnerships to maximize student learning experiences
Capitalize on Our Upper School
Goal Statement: Enhance the Upper School by enriching adolescents’ opportunities for academic study, meaningful work, development of independence, and spiritual growth in an authentic Montessori community.
Support sustainable, mission-aligned growth of the High School
Continue to refine our Upper School program in alignment with the Montessori philosophy
Update main campus and Japhet campus facilities to strengthen the prepared environments for the Adolescent Community and High School
Provide additional opportunities for Upper School students to pursue individual interests such as internships, independent studies, service, and coursework at partnering institutions
Steward Our Future
Goal Statement: Ensure our school’s fiscal model enables sustainability and mission-aligned value for all SCM stakeholders.
Advance our financial sustainability through multi-year financial planning to support future operational and capital needs
Provide broader access to an SCM education
Inspire philanthropy through robust donor stewardship and donor education on the benefits of an SCM education
Develop additional non-tuition revenue streams and broaden our relationships with foundations
“An education capable of saving humanity is no small undertaking; it involves the spiritual development of man, the enhancement of his value as an individual, and the preparation of young people to understand the times in which they live.”
– Dr. Maria Montessori
Strategic Plan Task Force
Ryan Patterson
Kathy Hijazi
Denise Stasio
Lina Delgado
Board President Emeritus
Previous Board Member
Board President Head of School
Bruce Moses
Amy Lindsey
Chad Mavity
Lyndsey Ray
Director of Lower School High School Guide
Board Member Advancement Director
