The Blue Ridge School Board of Trustees has laid the foundation for the coming years with the approval of a strategic plan focused on “pursuing mission permanence.” The Board approved the plan during its October 2020 meeting and the administration has spent the intervening months putting the plan into action.
The plan’s five major components include faculty development, curricular innovation, campus stewardship, admissions, and financial strength. Particular attention has been placed on investing in our faculty, incorporating 21st Century skills into the curriculum, preserving our majestic campus, clearly identifying Blue Ridge School’s place in the independent school landscape, and ensuring fiscal sustainability.
Blue Ridge School Board Chair Jill Kalinski says, “This plan will allow many future generations of students to benefit from Blue Ridge’s personalized and supportive environment. I am most proud of the collaborative work between trustees and school leadership and the bold vision of mission permanence. At the heart of this strategy is the commitment to DEIJ.”
This plan outlines the School’s desire to expand the services of our successful Fishburne Learning Center, and to grow our unique Character Education curriculum. Likewise, it promises resources to add to Blue Ridge’s hallmark Outdoor Education program and other programs critical to the BRS experience, such as spiritual life, student health & wellness, and residence life.
Headmaster Trip Darrin says, “As an all-boys, all-boarding school, we are uniquely positioned to provide boys with substantive character development opportunities. Our Character Education curriculum is supported with real-life experiences that the boys face every day in our residence halls. Putting lessons of character into action lets our students work through situations in a safe, supportive environment.”
Many of the strategic plan goals are already well underway. The new Williams Dining Hall is fully funded and construction is on schedule for completion by the end of 2021. The Board has made a commitment to DEIJ at Blue Ridge School and set up a task force that has begun the learning phase of its work. This year the school significantly upgraded on-campus internet speeds and access points and made new investments in the Makerspace.
Additional public information about Blue Ridge School’s strategic plan will be available soon.
