Why Strategic Planning Matters, and What We Learned at the Pan American School of Bahia

 

A little more than a year ago, I wrote about the strategic planning process in a Medium article titled The Strategic Planning Process in School Leadership.

At the time, I emphasised how a strategic plan, when done well, gives an organisation alignment, clarity, and shared purpose. But having just completed the strategic plan for the Pan American School of Bahia, I have been reminded that the value of strategic planning goes far beyond producing a polished document. When done properly, it guides decisions, aligns people, and keeps the community focused on what truly matters.

In every district I have served, I have seen the difference between a plan created for compliance and a plan created with intention. Compliance plans are created because they are required. Intentional plans shape culture. They help a school stay steady during periods of change. And, perhaps most importantly, they give people a sense of ownership over the future they are building together.

At the Pan American School of Bahia, we approached our strategic plan with that mindset. Although I have been part of many planning cycles over the years, including leading three of them as a superintendent in Michigan, the process here reaffirmed something I have always believed. The transformation occurs when an unbiased outside voice steps in and helps a community see itself clearly. That outside voice asks the right questions, surfaces patterns that insiders may not notice, and creates the space needed for honest and courageous conversations.

Our outside voice at PASB was Pamela Shakil. She facilitated our process with expertise, care, and a strong sense of humanity. From her first day, she modeled exactly what an effective consultant brings to the table. She listened deeply, challenged respectfully, and ensured that every stakeholder group, from students and teachers to parents and board members, had a meaningful role in shaping our direction.

What made this process especially powerful was how naturally it unfolded. We moved through structured phases including selecting the consultant, training internal coordinators, hosting community cafes, gathering insight from students, teachers, staff, families, and alumni, analyzing that feedback, and ultimately distilling it into a set of shared priorities. None of this felt perfunctory. It felt like a school community actively engaging in defining what it wants to become.

The PASB Strategic Plan is organized around five interconnected priorities: responsibility, curriculum, community, communication, and extra curricular. What stands out most is how naturally these themes rose to the surface during our conversations. They were not imposed from the top. They came from the voices of the people who know our school best.

Responsibility emerged through reflections on the type of culture we want for students and adults, and it led to the development of our Panther Principles which articulate how we want to treat one another and how we want to live our values. The curriculum priority recognizes our responsibility to ensure a coherent, research based early childhood through year twelve academic framework that supports deep learning across all our program pathways. The community priority reflects the heart of PASB by emphasizing a stronger sense of belonging for students, families, and staff. Communication became a priority because clarity and transparency are essential for a thriving international school community. Extra curricular programs surfaced because our families and students want more time and opportunity to explore interests beyond the classroom, and we want to ensure that the adults who support those experiences are able to do so in balanced and sustainable ways.

What I appreciate most about these priorities is that they do not operate in isolation. They reinforce one another. Strong communication builds trust which strengthens community. A coherent curriculum supports student responsibility and leadership. A vibrant extra curricular program enhances belonging and school identity. And consistent expectations across divisions create the stability everyone needs. The plan works as a living system.

Now the real work begins. As exciting as strategic planning can be, implementation is where the plan earns its value. At PASB, that work is already underway. We have established clear timelines, accountability structures, and built in review cycles to make sure the plan remains active and responsive. Our versioning system which schedules updates in 2026 and again in 2027 ensures that the plan never becomes stagnant.

But what gives me the greatest confidence in this plan’s success is the level of ownership I see across the entire PASB community. This is not a superintendent’s plan or a board plan. It is a shared commitment to our future. Our families, students, administrators, faculty, alumni, and staff helped create it. The priorities reflect their voices, their hopes, and their belief in who we are and who we can become.

That, in the end, is why strategic planning matters. It gives a school the chance to align its aspirations with its actions. It invites people into the process of shaping the future. And when done well, it strengthens the culture long before the first goal is implemented.

At the Pan American School of Bahia, we move forward with clarity, optimism, and a collective sense of purpose. The plan reflects our identity. The process strengthened our community. And the implementation ahead will help us continue becoming the school our students deserve.