Asheville City Schools board adopts strategic plan vision, mission and objectives

The Asheville City Schools board unanimously approved a memorandum adopting updated vision and mission statements, core values and student-outcomes objectives tied to the district’s strategic plan during its May 4 meeting.

Board members debated whether the student-outcomes language should use “achievement gap” or “opportunity gap.” Superintendent Maggie Fuhrman and staff reported they had sought feedback from Black staff members who urged the explicit use of “achievement gap.” Some board members recommended additional precision—one suggested adding “racial” to the phrasing—while others said the chosen language already reflected community input. After brief discussion, a motion to adopt the plan passed by voice vote.

Superintendent Fuhrman said the adoption moves the district into an action-planning phase; she described plans to incorporate teacher and student input into measurable steps and reported that the student advisory team had already provided feedback linking student priorities to elements of the new plan.

What happens next: the board directed staff to proceed with action planning and to include classroom teachers in drafting implementation steps. The board also asked that action plans and budget mapping be shared publicly as they are developed ahead of the June budget vote.