Shape Our Future! OCS Strategic Plan 2026-2031

Your Voice Matters!

Orange County Schools is developing a new five-year strategic plan to guide our goals and priorities for students.

Join us for the first Community Listening Session on Monday, November 3 at Cedar Ridge High School!

The strategic plan is a roadmap that helps guide and align our work to improve outcomes for the students we serve. We are excited to build the next version of that roadmap together with you to ensure a bright future for every child.

A student at New Hope Elementary is showing a journal to her parent to celebrate learning

AVID stands for Advancement Via Individual Determination, students and teachers working together to strengthen students' resiliency and purpose

Students Showcase Their Learning at Gravelly Hill Middle School with Superintendent Dr. Danielle Jones

Community Listening Sessions

We are committed to building a plan that reflects the values, hopes, and voices of our entire Orange County Schools community. Join us for Community Listening Sessions to hear about the state of our schools and share your input on focus areas. Sessions are open to all:

view resources for the ocs 2026-2031 strategic plan in spanish

Help Shape Our Future - Community Listening Sessions for the OCS 2026-2031 Strategic Plan

Building a New Plan Together

Here is our three-step process to build the new strategic plan with input from our entire community during the 2025-2026 school year:

First-year teacher Hunter Roberts fist bumps a 4th-grade student on the First Day of School at Hillsborough Elementary School in the 2025-2026 school year

Help Shape the Future of Orange County Schools

Our mission is educating students in a safe, inclusive environment where we engage, challenge, and inspire them to reach their maximum potential.

We Engage

We start by listening, engaged in dialogue with you.

Your voice matters. Thank you for taking our Community Input Survey!

Hundreds of students, families, staff, and community members shared feedback on your experience with Orange County Schools and your priorities for the future.

Next, OCS will host Community Listening Sessions in the fall and winter of 2025-2026 (see schedule above).

Help us understand what matters most to you. We are committed to making sure every voice is part of shaping the future of Orange County Schools.

We Challenge

Next, we challenge ourselves to build a plan for student success.

With input from our whole community, we will develop a strategic plan that ensures we are improving outcomes for the students we serve. Using feedback, data, and insights gathered from surveys and meetings throughout our community, leaders will create a plan with clear goals and actionable steps to advance student success.This plan will serve as the roadmap to guarantee that every single student can be successful—no exceptions.

We Inspire

Finally, we launch our plan—inspiring a future where every student has the opportunity to thrive.

The new strategic plan designed with our community's input will be presented to our Board of Education for approval in spring 2026. The five-year plan will not only guide how we support students in reaching their goals; it will also strengthen our schools as great places to learn, work, and grow for students, educators, families, and our whole community.

This shared vision for the future will align our work to ensure that everyone in our schools feels safe, seen, and supported—and every student enjoys the opportunity to thrive.The strategic plan we build together will guide the priorities and goals of Orange County Schools from 2026 to 2031.

Three Kindergarten students in a classroom smiling

Catherine Stanley's AVID students at Gravelly Hill Middle School work together, two in dialogue to the left and one working on a worksheet to the right

Jim Janish teaching engineering to students at Orange High School, students to the left observe as the teacher models a mechanical device to the right

Schedule for Convenings

We personally invite you to join this conversation. Help shape the future of Orange County Schools.

Community Listening Sessions on November 2 and December 3, 2025, will be the first two sessions focused on the state of our schools, feedback from the Community Input Survey, and listening to input from attendees.
Neighborhood Listening Sessions in January and February 2026 will bring the conversation to an area near you. Stay tuned for detailed location information:
- Fairview Neighborhood: January 7, 2026
- Cedar Grove Community: January 15, 2026
- Efland Community: February 3, 2026
- Spanish-Speaking Convening, New Hope ES: February 12, 2026
- Orange Grove: February 24, 2026

Priorities in Our Current Plan

During the 2024-2025 school year, the Orange County Schools' strategic priorities have been updated to align our work in service to students. Learn more about our community's priorities for the OCS 2021-2026 Strategic Plan by clicking the image or the priorities below.

Priority 1: Teaching Tomorrow's Leaders
Priority 2: Excellence and Efficiency
Priority 3: Exemplary Staff
Priority 4: Empowering Culture