University School of Milwaukee
Strategic Plan

Welcome to University School of Milwaukee’s strategic plan website. This new site showcases the results of nearly 18 months of work by many in our community. I am thankful that USM approached this plan from a position of strength. We have a solid foundation of an excellent academic program, robust enrollment, a growing endowment, and a commitment to staying debt-free. I am excited to launch this new chapter for USM, and I look forward to the many ways we will report on our success as a school over these next several years.

Our tradition of excellence compels us to continuously look for ways to improve. As part of our research, we surveyed more than 1,000 members of the school community, including faculty and staff, alumni, parents, and current students. We asked for their input on all aspects of school life, from our academic programs to the community and culture we want to create. Additionally, we sought feedback by hosting sessions with the faculty, my leadership team, the community, and the Board of Trustees throughout the year. We looked deeply at who we are and who we endeavor to be. We sought to be objective in identifying areas where we excel, while understanding the opportunities where we can achieve greater success.

During this process we carefully examined our mission. This work resulted in refining the school’s mission statement to reaffirm our commitment to the Common Trust and enhance our focus on academic excellence as we develop students who are learners, leaders, and citizens. I am excited to share the new mission statement with you now:

University School of Milwaukee cultivates excellence in learning, leadership, and citizenship for prekindergarten through 12th grade students. Students are engaged, known, and valued within our passionate independent school community guided by our Common Trust.

From this revised mission statement, we developed three school-wide priorities that are detailed in this site. First, we are an academic institution, and our commitment to educational excellence must always be at the forefront of all we endeavor to do as a school. Here, again, we are approaching this work from a position of strength, but we always have the opportunity to advance our long-standing traditions in order to help our students become better and stronger.

I am excited to introduce Amy Hand as our first assistant head of school for teaching and learning. Amy has wide experience from several independent schools around the country. She will spend her first months getting to know our teachers and students by visiting every classroom. I am excited for the research that she will gather and the direction we will lead together.

Learning can take place anywhere around our amazing campus. Kip Jacobs, from the esteemed Class of 1974, will move out of his 7th grade classroom to take on a new role at school as outdoor education coordinator. Kip is ready and excited to help partner with teachers to utilize the many resources that our campus has to offer. These are just a few of the initiatives we will be launching to help USM develop learners, leaders, and citizens in new and unique ways.

Our second priority will focus on the foundation of our Common Trust as we continue our ongoing work to strive for a diverse and inclusive community at USM that is reflective of the world in which we live. We have made great strides over the past two years, yet we know this work is constantly evolving. Our Common Trust is a galvanizing feature of who we are, and I look forward to the sense of belonging that can occur when we always treat each other with respect, trust, honesty, fairness, and kindness. I look forward to continuing to work to further define and clarify these values.

Our third priority centers around leveraging all of our tremendous resources to make certain our brand of educational excellence can live on forever.

There are many details of our plan found in the following pages. However, this is a continuously evolving project. I look forward to sharing more details and results as the months and years progress. Our continued dedication to educational excellence will guide us to become the best versions of ourselves. We are proud of the bold and exciting directives we have set, and we welcome the opportunity to accomplish our goals together.

Thank you.