Sultan School District regrouping after failed bond measure

After having a couple months to reflect on the failed bond measure, the Sultan School District is increasing communication to engage the community as it seeks a plan for the future.

The Sultan School District's recent bond measure was rejected by more than 56 percent of voters in the Feb. 9 special election. Critics said the district failed to communicate its intentions with school district constituents, who found fault in district priorities that included a performing arts center and an additional gym at the high school. As a result of this feedback, the district examined best practices in terms of fostering community engagement.

"The goal is to align community and stakeholder priorities by increasing the number of families and community members contributing their ideas and priorities that will ultimately help guide planning and decision-making processes,GÇ¥ according to a district news release.

To increase public engagement moving forward, the district is bringing in a group insight platform called Thought Exchange to help.

"The district chose Thought Exchange because they felt this company's processes would be most successful in helping it meet the goal of connecting with the community and stakeholders,GÇ¥ according to the district. "Thought Exchange is an online survey tool that asks participants very broad questions, and following the collection of hundreds or thousands of comments, begins to focus on common threads that emerge.GÇ¥

Once the tool has collected ideas based on public responses, the information is disseminated back to survey participants, who will be asked to rate the ideas using a star rating system. The district is hopeful the process will provide a clear indication of what it's doing right and where improvement is needed, based on input from its stakeholders.-á

The online conversation takes place April 25 through May 4, and community members are being encouraged to pre-register at https://tsu015.thoughtexchange.net/sultan/TS/app/signup?to=e537be3dad75464fb8dda5691545b323.