- Our Core Values
- Our Instructional Model: Accelerating Students #Forward
- Our Portrait of a Graduate
- Our Strategic Plan Goals
Our Core Values
INTEGRITY
Modeling and demonstrating trust, honesty, follow-through and commitment by staff, parents, community, and students.
INNOVATION
Changing with the evolving world to meet educational needs through shared ownership and independent thinking to solve complex problems.
LEARNING
Actively collaborating to gather information in an ever evolving environment.
RESPECTFUL
Honoring each person’s individuality while celebrating and supporting the community’s diversity.
NURTURING
Providing timely support that fosters growth in all.
Our Instructional Model: Accelerating Students #Forward
The J.O. Combs Unified School District is committed to empowering its learners in a modern learning experience. Our Instructional Model values a Nurturing Culture, Innovation, Purposeful Learning, and Assessment as the tools through which our students will have the critical skills, knowledge, and understanding that will allow them to successfully participate in a changing global world. #Forward is our district movement towards personalized learning, personalized assessment, and flexible learning spaces for all students. We began this process by developing our Theory of Action, then created our Instructional Model, and identified our initial cohort of teachers to begin the change process towards modern learning experiences for our students. As a result of #Forward, we have made significant changes to our Professional Learning model, including our coaching and delivery processes. We are excited to take our next steps #Forward to a district-wide learner centered culture!
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NURTURING CULTURE |
| INNOVATION We encourage new approaches to learning in order for students to produce authentic work. |
| ASSESSMENT We assess student progress by collecting a variety of actionable data responding to the ever changing needs of students, teachers, and parents. |
| PURPOSEFUL LEARNING We provide relevant, authentic, engaging learning experiences leading to transferable skills applicable to the world in which students live. |
Our Portrait of a Graduate
Through a collaborative process with internal and external stakeholders, the J.O. Combs Unified School District has identified the desired skills, knowledge, and characteristics that we believe students must possess in order to be successful in today’s ever-changing global community.
MODERN SKILLS
Collaboration
Students effectively and respectively work with others to successfully meet goals.
Problem Solving
Students possess the skills and perseverance to develop solutions to solve difficult and complex problems.
Critical Thinking
Students critically evaluate and address complex information through analysis, explanation, and open mindedness.
KNOWLEDGE
Technology
Students are digitally literate and able to utilize innovation and modern technology.
Communication
Students possess effective interpersonal, written, and verbal communication skills.
Global Awareness
Students possess the necessary cultural awareness to thrive in a global community.
CHARACTERISTICS
Adaptability
Students can learn from and successfully adjust to an ever-changing environment.
Integrity
Students demonstrate honesty and truthfulness through consistent strong moral and ethical principles.
Work Ethic
Students possess an intrinsic and reflective commitment to hard work.
Our Strategic Plan Goals
For the past several years, the District has worked collaboratively with stakeholders to develop an updated organizational plan. This process has included the creation of the Portrait of a Graduate as well as a new vision, mission and core values for the District. Embedded in this work are the voices of staff, students, parents and community members, with the final result being the roll out of Strategic Plan Goals.
The goals contained within this document were written with a completion target of June 2027. In alignment with each goal are specific objectives and targeted strategies for success. The specific strategies outlined in this document are designed to be completed during 2024-2025 and should be considered stepping stones to reach the ultimate goals for the J.O. Combs Unified School District by 2027.
Strategic Plan 2025-2026
- Goal One: Nurturing Culture
- Goal Two: Purposeful Learning
- Goal Three: Assessment
- Goal Four: Innovation
Goal One: Nurturing Culture
Goal: The J.O. Combs Unified School District Educational Community, through a learner-centered experience in a supportive environment, will report a sense of belonging and high levels of engagement as demonstrated by a 5% increase annually from June 2024 through June 2027, as measured on a variety of surveys and measurement instruments.
Objective #1: The J.O. Combs Unified School District educational community, through a learner-centered experience in a supportive environment, will report a sense of belonging and high levels of engagement as demonstrated by each school providing four meaningful opportunities for parental involvement and engagement, as well as the one opportunity districtwide annually through June 2027.
- Strategy 1: The J.O. Combs Unified School District schools will track at least four stand alone events (not choir, athletics...) held on their campus, including the number of attendees by June 2026.
- Strategy 2: The J.O. Combs Unified School District campuses will build relational capacity through two positive parent communications per student via in person, phone call or email each quarter through May 2026.
- Strategy 3: The J.O. Combs Unified School District and schools will host four Community Roundup events by June 2026.
Objective #2: The J.O. Combs Unified School District will build positive relationships and a sense of belonging with the educational community as measured by parental, student and staff ratings of the District and schools each year through June 2027.
- Strategy 1: The schools in the J.O. Combs Unified School District will receive an "A" or a "B" rating from at least 70% of parent, student, and staff respondents, or schools will show a 5% increase over the previous year’s rating by June 2026.
Objective #3: The J.O. Combs Unified School District will build positive relationships and create a sense of belonging to reduce behaviors and thereby increase academic achievement annually through June 2027.
- Strategy 1: The J.O. Combs Unified School District will implement the Instructional Time Model (ITM) and will reduce the percentage of chronically absent students by 15% by June 2026.
- Strategy 2: The J.O. Combs Unified School District will collect, analyze and review the major violation data as collected through PBIS Rewards on elementary and middle school campuses and Synergy on high school campuses by June 2026.
Goal Two: Purposeful Learning
Goal: The J.O. Combs Unified School District will utilize the portrait of a graduate to create model classrooms and evaluation frameworks that empower educators with the tools and professional learning to improve instructional practices, leading to a 5% annual increase in student achievement on state assessments through June 2027.
Objective #1: One hundred percent (100%) of the J.O. Combs Unified School District certified staff will complete professional development focused on implementing “Modern Educator” practices that align with increasing student achievement to foster purposeful learning experiences in the classroom by June 2027.
- Strategy 1: The J.O. Combs Unified School District certified staff will complete 95% of professional development, including relevant Modern Teacher modules, that supports their understanding of essential standards and instructional best practices, as provided by J.O. Combs or other professional development by June 2026.
- Strategy 2: One hundred percent (100%) of the certified staff with two or more years in our district will complete literacy tiles in Goals 1 and 2 on the Modern Teacher platform by June 2026.
- Strategy 3: By June 2026, each school within the district will fully implement and sustain a Professional Learning Community (PLC) model through the establishment of building-level PLC leadership teams, consistent use of structured protocols, and data-driven accountability systems, resulting in improved collaboration and instructional practices across grade levels and departments.
- Strategy 4: One hundred percent (100%) of all instructional teams will effectively and consistently utilize the district's Professional Learning Community (PLC) protocol, as measured by a monthly review of PLC meeting agendas and artifacts, leading to a demonstrable increase in the use of data-driven instructional interventions by June 2026.
Objective #2: One hundred percent (100%) of J.O. Combs certified staff will effectively utilize PLC structures to collaboratively plan for, and implement, instructional strategies that target essential standards ("boulders") by June 2027.
- Strategy 1: By June 2026, the J. O. Combs Unified School District will standardize and revise the components of PLC meetings to ensure they are data-driven and focused on creating targeted learning plans and interventions based on the 15-Day Challenge framework.
- Strategy 2: By June 2026, the J. O. Combs Unified School District will create a system for self-assessment and monitoring to ensure consistent use and understanding of the 15-Day Challenge concepts across all PLCs.
Objective #3: J.O. Combs Unified School District will demonstrate increased student achievement through an annual analysis of district and state assessment data, directly correlating results with the implementation of the 15-Day Challenge framework and effective PLC structures by June 2027.
- Strategy 1: The J.O. Combs Unified School District will utilize PLCs to analyze data from formative assessments to identify trends, discuss student needs, and collaboratively plan instructional responses during the 2025-26 school year.
- Strategy 2: The J.O. Combs Unified School District will use evaluation and walkthrough data to identify instructional strengths and areas for growth, and align professional development opportunities to address these needs during the 2025-26 school year.
- Strategy 3: The J.O. Combs Unified School District will create a system to regularly analyze student performance on district and state assessments, specifically looking for gains in standards identified as "boulders" by June 2026.
Goal Three: Assessment
Goal: The J.O. Combs Unified School District community will have all grade levels exceed state level proficiency scores on achievement testing, maintain high proficiency on civics exam and CTE state exams, and maintain a 90% graduation with less than a 2% dropout rate by 2027.
Objective #1: The J.O. Combs Unified School District will meet or exceed the state level proficiency scores on state assessments based on cohort data by June 2027.
- Strategy 1: The J.O. Combs Unified School District will meet or exceed the state growth percentage in ELA, Math and Science on Spring Assessments each year.
- Strategy 2: The J.O. Combs Unified School District will maintain a passing rate on the Arizona Civics Exam based on the following percentages per grade level each year: 8th grade 80%, 90% at 10th grade and 100% by 12th grade.
- Strategy 3: In each CTE Program in the J.O. Combs Unified School District will meet or exceed the average overall state assessment scores for identical programs on CTE state exams by June 2026.
- Strategy 4: The J.O. Combs Unified School District will demonstrate year-to-year growth in proficiency based on cohort data on the end-of-year state assessment.
Objective #2: The J.O. Combs Unified School District will utilize a variety of assessment measures beyond standardized tests, annually, to measure student proficiency throughout the school year by June 2027.
- Strategy 1: The J.O. Combs Unified School District will have an average 5% increase at the District Level for 3rd-8th grade on the spring AASA practice test yearly.
- Strategy 2: The J.O. Combs Unified School District will implement an ACT mimic assessment (Horizon) for the 25-26 SY to collect baseline data on student readiness.
- Strategy 3: The J.O. Combs Unified School District will provide training in classroom progress monitoring for improved "checks” for understanding, to gauge students' path to proficiency of priority standards in each unit by June 2026.
- Strategy 4: The J.O. Combs Unified School District will have at least a 1% increase at the District level and/or the school level for the District graduation rate from the previous year and maintain no greater than a 2% dropout rate at the District level for 2025-2026.
Objective #3: The J.O. Combs Unified School District community will utilize a variety of data sources and the MTSS framework to effectively respond to student needs each school year through June 2027.
- Strategy 1: The J.O. Combs Unified School District will participate in PLC and MTSS Core Teams utilizing student data (aligned to District Level assessments and screeners) to develop and provide differentiation in learning, evidence-based strategies and supports, and targeted and intensive interventions based on student need throughout the 2025-2026 school year.
- Strategy 2: The J.O. Combs Unified School District will use a data-based decision making model to provide differentiation in learning, evidence-based strategies and supports, and targeted and intensive interventions based on student need throughout the 2025-2026 school year. Utilizing FastBridge as a screening and diagnostic instrument, teachers are able to identify students' levels of risk from high risk to college pathway.
- Strategy 3: The J.O. Combs Unified School District will have a decrease of an average of 5% of students scoring in the High Risk category on the FastBridge Universal Screening Tool at the District Level in grades K-8 yearly.
Goal Four: Innovation
Goal: The J.O. Combs Unified School District community, through a personalized approach to learning, will have 100% of the students complete Learner Profiles by June 2027.
Objective #1: The J.O. Combs Unified School District will demonstrate student College & Career Readiness by eighty percent (80%) of secondary students (grades 7-12) engaged in 80% of ACP development by June 2027.
- Strategy 1: The J.O. Combs Unified School District will identify 7th-12th grade level CCR tasks and create a pacing guide for each site to follow to complete each task.
- Strategy 2: Ninety percent (90%) of students in 8th grade will complete a four- year plan outlining their courses of study as of June 2026.
Objective #2: The J.O. Combs Unified School District will develop and adopt a district policy on the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) by June 2027, ensuring that planning, piloting, stakeholder engagement, and professional learning inform the final policy.
- Strategy 1: By December 2025, the District will form an AI Exploration Team composed of educators, administrators, IT staff, parents, and students representing all school levels.
- Strategy 2: By March 2026, the District will create a stakeholder report based on feedback through surveys and forums. and will provide recommendations for draft AI regulations and procedures.
- Strategy 3: By May 2026, the District will provide at least two professional learning sessions per school site focused on AI literacy, ethical use, and instructional integration.
- Strategy 4: By June 2026, the District will recommend pilot programs up to three vetted AI-powered educational tools across elementary, middle, and high school classrooms.