Staff Development Plan for School Support Personnel

Position Statement and Mission

In an educational environment, all staff members are vital components of a successful administration. The purpose of the support staff development plan is to encourage greater self-esteem and foster achievement among support staff, which includes custodians and maintenance personnel. Classified personnel in many districts have generally been characterized as having very low self-esteem, due largely to the belief that they are treated as second-class citizens in the school setting.

Support staff, however, are vital team members in an educational setting. Their sense of self-worth is critical, as the actions of all staff and perceived notions of self-esteem are reflected in students. Every staff member plays a vital role in facilitating and engaging students — including support staff. This staff development plan will therefore be focused on the school's mission while also concentrating on the importance support staff have in carrying out that mission.

Support staff must work in collaboration with all other staff members to provide a safe and secure learning environment. The individual staff member, the entire school site, and the school district must always work in a collaborative manner, with job functions overlapping, in order for students to realize their true potential. All staff members, including support staff, need to understand how their role is vital to the group dynamic and how they can affect the outcomes of all students.

The mission of the school district is as follows: "to promote high academic achievement, build character, and foster creativity for every student." In order for this mission to be achieved, all staff members — including support staff — must participate in staff development programs oriented toward personal and professional growth and collaborative team efforts. All staff must work together to understand their role and impact on student behavior and achievement. In a school setting, no single role is more important than any other.

The objectives of the school district are stated as follows:

District Objectives and Program Goals

Promote High Academic Achievement: Students will possess, upon graduation, effective thinking, listening, speaking, reading, writing, and research skills; knowledge of and ability to apply math and science; a grasp of history; and facility in a foreign language.

Build Character: Students will develop respect for all people, fairness, discipline, trustworthiness, empathy, responsibility, compassion, and good citizenship.

Foster Creativity: Students will pursue creative endeavors in an effort to promote academic inquiry, artistic expression, and enjoyment.

The goal of the staff development program is to help all members of the staff participate in and contribute to student achievement at all levels. The professional development plan will teach support staff members how their interactions and daily activities can impact students in a positive or negative way, and help them recognize what steps are necessary to support students in reaching their highest academic potential. In the process, support staff will also learn exactly what methods are required for them to realize their own highest potential.

Staff Development Strategies

In order to accomplish the objectives described above, the staff development plan will focus on assisting support staff in recognizing their role as team members in the school district and helping them achieve genuine professional growth and development. The development plan will be geared toward staff development on a variety of levels. Staff will be encouraged to develop any technical skills and abilities associated with their job, but will also be encouraged to develop the "soft" skills related to their role. Each job will be viewed in the context of the organization as a whole, rather than as a function independent of the learning environment.

In addition, the staff development plan will work toward boosting the self-esteem of support staff so that they understand their contributions to the academic success of students are equally as important as those of other staff members, including teachers. All staff members have an impact on the ultimate performance of students. Support staff have as much opportunity to contribute to the mission of the organization as any other member of the staff. The key to a successful development plan is instilling value in the everyday activities of all support staff members.

Staff members will learn exactly how their contributions add to the overall success of the team, thereby boosting motivation and the desire to achieve. Support staff will be involved in development programs geared toward all staff, including diversity training and a shared understanding of the school district's mission and goals.

Self-esteem training and development will focus on positive behavior reinforcement strategies. Support staff members will be placed in a group environment where they will be asked to identify three critical contributions their job provides to the academic and school environment as a whole. In addition, staff members will be asked to identify one specific contribution they have made to the academic team in the current year, in order to better understand how important their contributions are to the overall success of the school district.