Annually in November, schools report their profile with the state department of education. This Strategic School Profile is shared information highlighting enrollment, demographics, percentages of teachers, the student needs, school resources, school performance having used those resources - and their outcomes, and student performance. Listed are the main goals to improve any school upon using this information in the decision making process.

This profile then aligns with the school mission statement. This can be the school's purpose for existence. It is their set of values and goals to which they aspire. This mission is the school's framework to evaluate their current activities, initiatives and interventions.

Usually, the mission is clearly stated and understood by all. It can be found hanging in the main hall of the building, or in the main office. It may be etched in the pavers or tiles of the school floor in the main hall, or it is cast in bronze and hangs in a showcase. It is usually the main banner of a school's web site. All forms of awareness indicate that the school lives this mission on a day-to-day basis. They are bound to it and by it.

This mission defines who they are.

Why should mission statements matter?

Mission statements are yet another cog in the wheel of the education experience administrators and teachers need to provide for their students. It is another accountability system put in place to ensure that the children will receive equal educational opportunities every day. The statement empowers all to believe that success will be fostered through meeting the academic needs of all students.

The only way to do this is with resources. Resources matter. However, there is something wrong when schools do not have them, do not get them or have a limited supply. Teachers and administrators who believe in their mission statement will provide the resources out of their own pockets because they know that with them they can bring the mission or vision to fruition.

As talks of budgets, budget increases and decreases, or no budget at all, continue till June, each town needs to review the mission statement it asked its schools to write. No mission can be accomplished without tools and resources. Research indicates this, yet they are being taken away, or considered unnecessary to the educational experience.

Education is no longer a once size fits all philosophy. Educational research is changing daily forcing teachers and administrators to fine-tune their mission each day: A practice that requires unlimited resources and support.

All community leaders need to gain alignment with their schools' mission of educating the children of the community they oversee, and not with the mission of spending where it may not matter most. As schools report to the state, the state reports to them on their performance: a direct reflection of what resources their town provided or not. Imagine what the new strategic school profile will look like then in November.