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She will thrive: leading with excellence CSG's Strategic Plan

Letter from the Head of School

Dear Columbus School for Girls Community,
 
For more than 125 years, Columbus School for Girls has been the premier educational institution for central Ohio’s most promising young women. We have maintained this position of strength through a steadfast commitment to our mission, by living our core values, and by embracing our belief in the endless capacity of girls.
 
It is fitting that as we imagine the future of our beloved school, that we remain centered on our delivery of an excellent, and world-class, academic and co-curricular experience for the girls and young women we serve. She Will Thrive: Leading With Excellence, CSG’s new strategic plan, is our vision for the future of our school. In our plan, you will see our collective commitments to equipping our students with the knowledge, tools and skills they need to thrive in an ever changing world.

We Commit to:

  bolster institutional excellence  

Photo of student walking down the red carpet at commencement with roses in hand.
We commit to bolster CSG as a model of institutional excellence in girls’ education.
Priorities:
  • Implement a comprehensive enrollment plan that allows CSG to operate efficiently and balances individualized attention and plentiful opportunities.
  • Articulate and share CSG’s distinctive approach to academic excellence to increase the school’s visibility as a first-rate institution and a thought leader in girls’ education.
  • Develop a comprehensive financial plan to ensure CSG’s long-term sustainability.
  • Develop a multi-phased plan to ensure CSG’s campuses, facilities, and infrastructure meet the evolving needs of our students and faculty. 

  DEVELOP GLOBAL LEARNERS & LEADERS  

Middle School student in Japanese dress speaking into a microphone.
We commit to develop globally-minded learners and empathetic leaders to thrive in the 21st century.
Priorities:
  • Cultivate a balanced academic and co-curricular offering that equips girls to thrive among a global peer set.
  • Bolster programming within the Institute for Innovation and Leadership and its centers to foster dynamic, forward-thinking changemakers.
  • Recruit, retain, develop, and support exceptional faculty and staff who model collaborative ways of teaching and innovating.

  NURTURE VIBRANT MINDS & BODIES  

Upper School student-athlete playing field hockey.
We commit to nurture vibrant minds and bodies to know and fully realize their power.
Priorities:
  • Integrate social-emotional learning needs into the curriculum and facilities master plan, prioritizing wellness in CSG’s ongoing work.
  • Equip family members and caregivers with tools and knowledge to support girls in their educational journeys and beyond.
  • Create a comprehensive professional development program for our educators emphasizing best social, emotional, and physical health and wellness practices.

  FOSTER CONNECTIONS  

President and CEO of COSI Frederick Bertley is helping two Lower School students complete a science experience with dry ice. Students are wearing white lab jackets, goggles, and gloves.
We commit to foster connection within CSG, our alumnae, greater Columbus, and the world beyond.
Priorities:
  • Cultivate a strong sense of community within CSG by ensuring students, family members, and educators have numerous opportunities to connect and engage.
  • Increase engagement with our esteemed alumnae through mutually supported and mutually beneficial programming.
  • Establish relationships with local, national, and global organizations to provide students with a variety of hands-on leading, learning, and serving opportunities (beyond the walls of CSG).

  CREATE A CULTURE OF BELONGING  

Student smiles and waves at camera. She is wearing a white shirt and is covered in multi-color powder from CSG's Holi celebration.
We commit to create a culture that cultivates a profound sense of belonging.
Priorities:
  • Promote an ethos that honors and serves girls’ unique needs and experiences.
  • Integrate opportunities throughout the curriculum in which girls see themselves and are challenged to broaden their perspectives.
  • Develop a comprehensive plan to attract and retain a diverse mission-aligned faculty, staff, and student body.
  • Design diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging initiatives that invite all CSG constituency groups to engage and participate in establishing an inclusive culture.

Our Process

Mission Minded and Columbus School for Girls kicked off the strategic planning engagement in September of 2023 by agreeing upon goals, a process, and a work plan. The process was guided by a carefully selected Steering Committee, with each member contributing a unique perspective to the work.

After a comprehensive review of CSG’s strategic documents, Mission Minded conducted 12 in-depth interviews with members of the CSG community. Building on the qualitative insights, Mission Minded developed and fielded an online survey to better understand the community’s current perceptions of CSG. In total, 729 students, staff, alumnae, and families shared their opinions. At the end of this phase, Mission Minded shared the key strategic opportunities that emerged based on the discovery work.

In December 2023, during two days of work sessions on campus, the Steering Committee affirmed the strategic commitments enabling the broader CSG community, including faculty, staff, parents, and guardians to ideate about the initiatives needed to realize them. Subsequently, the entire CSG community was invited to participate in a second survey to prioritize the initiatives they hope the school will set forth. Based on this input, the final strategic plan was endorsed by the Steering Committee and presented to the Board of Trustees. It was unanimously approved on March 8th, 2024.

Ways to Connect

Thank You