^{OUR NORTH STAR

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Ensworth empowers students to lead and shape the future.

Ensworth is a dynamic, engaged, and inclusive community with students at our core. A palpable sense of joy and commitment to excellence drive our innovative academic program and robust arts and athletics offerings, developing leaders of integrity who use their talents to positively impact the world.

People

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Surrounding our Students
with Exceptional Educators

Program

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Driving Academic Excellence

Educating Beyond the Classroom

Igniting Leadership for Impact

Places

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Creating Spaces to Deliver our Mission & Cultivate Community

^{FOUNDATIONAL ELEMENTS

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Community: The Foundation for Ensworth

Philanthropy and Stewardship: Ensuring Continued Strength

Board of Trustees: Supporting Initiatives

Strategic Pillars

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^{PILLAR

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^{Surrounding our Students with Exceptional Educators}

Our faculty and staff are the passionate guides of our community, serving our students and families in pursuit of our mission and modeling leadership, inclusivity, resilience, and a growth mindset. We will take an intentional, disciplined, and innovative approach to become the school of first choice for the finest teachers, coaches, and mentors in the world.

^{PILLAR

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^{Driving Academic Excellence}

Educating the whole child begins with nurturing students’ minds to develop intellectual curiosity and a passion for learning that will propel them forward. By combining research-based best practices and student-centered pedagogy, we will build the foundational academic abilities, habits of mind, and core skills our students need to succeed in a rapidly changing world.

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^{Educating Beyond the Classroom}

Co-curricular programs are a key component to our whole child approach to education and are an integral extension of our academic program. Our vision to create a deep sense of community and belonging that pervades all aspects of school life comes to fruition when all students participate in a broad array of artistic, athletic, and academic activities led by the finest coaches and artistic educators.

^{PILLAR

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^{Igniting Leadership for Impact}

Our commitment to diversity, civil discourse, discussion-based pedagogy, and collaborative problem-solving make leadership a natural byproduct of an Ensworth education. We will continue to equip our students with the skills required to drive positive change, weaving leadership development into every facet of the student experience at Ensworth.

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^{Creating Spaces to Deliver our Mission & Cultivate Community}

Our people and programs thrive in spaces designed to support our mission and build community. High-quality facilities reflect our commitment to excellence and the well-being of our students and faculty. We will thoughtfully design spaces that enhance collaborative interactions and enrich the overall educational experience, making facilities a key component of success and sustainability in the strategic landscape.

Strategies

Pillar: Surrounding our Students with Exceptional Educators

Cultivate Excellence

^{To attract and retain top talent, we will:}

^{● Develop a robust faculty recruitment program with specific attention to cultivating diversity}

^{● Develop a faculty compensation philosophy that is more competitive with similarly educated professionals}

^{● Explore tuition remission and other benefits to understand how we compare to other schools}

^{● Design and implement a multi-year onboarding program for all new faculty members}

Seek Actionable Insights

^{To provide and gather valuable feedback, we will:}

^{● Develop a set of Essential Expectations for faculty, staff, and leadership to ensure alignment with the school's mission, vision, values, and educational priorities}

^{● Implement a faculty/staff evaluation system to promote professional growth and support

● Utilize feedback software to provide school leadership with insights, advice, and reports from faculty/staff perspectives}

Nurture a Growth Mindset

^{To support professional development, we will:}

^{●  Explore an in-house Center for Teaching and Learning to curate professional development opportunities, provide coaching and feedback, and monitor and promote best practices

●  Ensure professional development drives innovation and collaboration and fosters common practices

●  Dedicate professional development resources to leadership training and promote a culture of collegiality and positive peer-to-peer relationships}

Pillar: Driving Academic Excellence

Reinforce our Strengths

^{To build upon our whole child, student-centered approach to education, we will:}

^{● Reaffirm our commitment to student-centered pedagogies to further develop critical thinking, interpersonal, and communication skills}

^{●  Develop “Portraits of an Ensworth Student” and benchmark assessments for each division

●  Utilize our Umbrella Policy to promote better academic outcomes, balanced time commitments, and wellness

●  Implement initiatives to recognize individual academic successes while continuing to celebrate the community as a whole}

Enhance Programs

^{To advance our academic program, we will:}

^{● Expand K-12 offerings in applied sciences, including engineering, robotics, design, and computer science}

^{● Continue enhancements to our Lower and Middle School literacy and writing programs}

^{● Perform a comprehensive analysis of the curriculum map and implement adjustments where appropriate

● Find additional ways to connect co-curricular programs and experiences across campuses and divisions}

^{● Evaluate our 4-year College Counseling Program to ensure that our students are equipped to successfully navigate the college process}

Support Academic Success

^{To promote academic success for our students, we will:}

^{● Enhance academic support services for our students, including high-performing neurodivergent learners}

^{●  Conduct a comprehensive review of our school schedule to ensure consistency and predictability

●  Explore developing an Academic Learning Center for students to come before, during, and after school for additional academic support

●  Align assessment and grading with best practices}

Pillar: Educating Beyond the Classroom

Expand Opportunities K-12

^{To deliver a well-balanced, whole child education, we will:}

^{● Expand Middle and High School co-curricular programs like Vex Robotics, Model UN, Mock Trial, Broadcasting, and more

● Align Middle School art and athletic offerings to better prepare students for a diverse array of High School opportunities}

^{● Develop age-appropriate athletic offerings for Lower School students, partnering with families to promote an inclusive environment

● Improve the quality of Ensworth-sponsored leagues and artistic programs, ensuring that all are aligned with the mission and vision of the school}

^{● Evaluate the Umbrella Policy to ensure students have adequate time to perform at a high level while protecting time for academics, other activities, and family life}

Enhance Experiential & Service Learning

^{To positively impact the community and provide our students with unique learning opportunities, we will:}

^{● Expand Ensworth’s service-learning opportunities K-12, fully integrating these experiences into the curriculum

● Explore additional travel and internship opportunities for students}

^{● Explore and evaluate grade level retreats and trips, ensuring outcomes match our purposes}

Evaluate our Systems

^{To optimize class schedules and the student experience, we will:}

^{● Evaluate academic requirements K-12 to promote excellence in our core curriculum while providing appropriate flexibility to pursue areas of passion}

^{● Review our process for awarding credit for ensembles to grow quality and participation in these groups}

^{● Evaluate the ways in which we determine requirements for incoming students K-12, ensuring our practices provide pathways into Ensworth for highly qualified students}

^{● Develop a committee of academic leaders to review unique circumstances for our students}

Pillar: Igniting Leadership for Impact

Amplify our Leadership Curriculum

^{To equip our students with the skills required to be effective leaders, we will:}

^{● Develop a leadership curriculum that articulates Ensworth’s definition of leadership and how we inculcate these skills in our students through our core programming and events

● Articulate and develop the ways we build leadership in Ensworth students at each grade level, highlighting the imperative of character development in leadership}

^{● Further develop and articulate Ensworth’s commitment to civil discourse and civic engagement, building students’ abilities to engage in these conversations and take principled action}

Foster Leadership Skill Development

^{To equip our students with the skills required to be effective leaders, we will:}

^{● Incorporate leadership training in our social-emotional learning program}

^{●  Empower students to take the lead in Project Talk, Honor Council, assemblies, and more

●  Support and celebrate our students as they pursue volunteer leadership opportunities in the community

●  Further develop our Service Scholars program to incorporate more active leadership opportunities for students

●  Explore the creation of an Institute for Leadership at Ensworth, including summer programming and opportunities throughout the school year}

Pillar: Creating Spaces to Deliver our Mission and Cultivate Community

Enhance Facilities

^{To create and maintain high-quality spaces, we will:}

^{● Identify optimal enrollment for each grade level}

^{●  Revise our master plan in partnership with a campus architect and master planning firm}

^{●  Explore options to continue renovating and improving academic, arts, athletics, and community spaces

●  Initiate consideration of a capital campaign to support facility improvement initiatives}

Foundational Elements

Community: The Foundation for Ensworth

^{At Ensworth, we believe that a thriving community is the cornerstone of our success. Our students, faculty and staff, parents, grandparents, and alumni community form the vibrant heart of our institution, bringing passion, dedication, and a commitment to excellence in everything they do. Their energy and enthusiasm create an environment where learning and growth flourish.}

^{As a school, we are committed to cultivating an environment in which all members of the Ensworth community experience a true sense of belonging and are empowered to be active participants in the life of the school. These efforts are essential if we are to foster the growth of all students in line with their potential, and to equip them for lives of purpose that extend far beyond their time at Ensworth.}

^{● Explore how new families are welcomed into the Ensworth community and identify ways that the school can assist them as they transition to Ensworth}

^{● Educate and inform our alumni on ways they can support our current students through internships and mentor relationships}

^{● Utilizing our Office of Community Engagement and Inclusion, seek ways to further expand our community partnerships and broaden our outreach}

^{● Evaluate each campus to ensure that we have appropriate space to gather as a community both indoors and outdoors}

Philanthropy & Stewardship: Ensuring Continued Strength

^{Ensworth School benefits from the strategic foresight of the board and our donors' generosity, which have secured beautiful facilities and a significant endowment. We are committed to meticulously stewarding and increasing our physical and financial resources to enhance and broaden our mission. To maintain quality programs and the best possible student experience, Ensworth must continue to actively steward its existing resources and grow its base of support. Philanthropic support will drive the development of existing facilities and programs and allow for the construction of future needs. Strong fundraising and careful management of existing resources are critical to Ensworth’s future strength.}

^{● Develop a Case for Support that inspires the broad community to invest in excellence at Ensworth and encourage unrestricted giving and investment in Ensworth programs

● Develop a rationale for estimating Ensworth’s ideal endowment and create a plan for raising funds, including the portion of that ideal endowment that should be included in the capital campaign}

^{● Honor and cultivate the legacy of our alumni by creating programs, events, and services that inspire them to engage with the school as important members of our community, holding them up as examples for our current students, and invite them to participate both personally and financially in the future of our school}

Board of Trustees: Supporting Initiatives

^{The Ensworth School Board serves as the strategic cornerstone of governance. It aims to uphold the school's excellence and secure its future. To this end, we are committed to the ongoing development of the Board's capabilities in governance and strategic leadership, reinforcing the foundation for enduring success.}

^{●  The role of the Ensworth Board is that of a strategically focused fiduciary. We will use the Strategic Plan to determine our annual calendar, review committee charges, set strategic and operational goals, and evaluate effectiveness. We will update our plan annually and rewrite the plan every 4 to 6 years

●  Write a board profile to guide recruitment. Determine the necessary qualities and skills for the board to operate effectively and use the profile for recruitment. Consider the various professional roles (real estate, legal, financial, etc.) that will expand board capacity. Create a board tracking system to build a permanent record of membership, committee service, tenure, and giving to safeguard the board's strategic focus and to maintain institutional memory

●  Customize the annual board self-assessment tool to reflect the necessary aspects of the Strategic Plan to improve our self-evaluation process}

Updates & Progress

People

Our faculty and staff are more than teachers; they are mentors who model leadership and a growth mindset. As we strive to be the school of first choice for outstanding educators, we have implemented several initiatives, including:

Hired Lower School grade level teachers, subject-specific teachers in both Middle School and High School, a Lower School Math Specialist, a High School Reading & Writing Coach, a High School Math Coach, and a High School Testing Coordinator to support students.
Began redesigning our onboarding process to ensure new faculty and staff receive training and support they need to thrive.
Launched a Lower School leadership cohort for Responsive Classroom to support faculty creating joyful, dynamic learning environments.
Partnered with Andy Van Schaack, former Vanderbilt University Professor at the Peabody College of Education, to research and design the framework for a Center of Teaching Excellence at Ensworth.
Added outstanding High School faculty who bring both deep curricular expertise and passions that enrich campus life through Mock Trial, Model UN, and other co-curricular experiences. Their dedication and energy are equipping students not just for success today, but for leadership tomorrow.
Allocated over $100,000 in additional funding towards professional development to ensure our faculty remain at the top of their craft. More information about this will be shared during our October in-service.

Programs

Our Strategic Vision reaffirms our commitment to educating the whole child by nurturing intellectual curiosity and a love of learning. With a focus on research-based best practices and student-centered pedagogy, we will prepare our students to succeed in a rapidly changing world. To continue to lead in this area, we have:

Introduced science of writing curriculum into Middle School English, History and Research, Writing, & Public Speaking courses.
Implemented new assessments—Mindprint in Middle School and High School and Acadience in our Lower School—to help our faculty understand students’ strengths and to inform the instruction.
Provided school-wide professional development on best practices in student-centered pedagogies within the contexts of neurodiversity, assessment practices, and teaching and learning with AI.
Launched a High School Mock Trial program and a summer experiential learning trip for Grade 6 students focused on marine biology.
Expanded Grade 5 athletics to deepen co-curricular engagement and community building.
Implemented extended time testing for eligible Middle School and High School students.
Introduced a new High School Student Life Team, including four Class Deans and a Director of Student Life to guide students through their journey at Ensworth and to oversee programming.
Began evaluating key areas, including Information Technology, College Counseling, and Institutional Advancement, to ensure we remain at the forefront of serving students, families, and alumni.
Implemented a new Life Class curriculum in the Lower School, and started developing a Lower School research-based writing curriculum to complement the recently updated literacy curriculum.
Hired new Middle School athletics coaches, and upgraded uniforms and travel gear — tangible signs of our belief in the potential of every student-athlete.

Places

We believe that thoughtfully designed spaces elevate learning and support our broader mission. To continue to enhance our spaces, we:

Partnered with Ennead Architects to update the Frist campus master plan.
Completed several High School renovations, including the math and science hallways and classrooms, Elcan Athletics Center, turf field, and dining area improvements.
Completed several renovations to the Red Gables campus, including Patton Hall, Robinson Hall, the Frist Hall theater lobby, and the lower library.
Acquired the Bellevue Baseball property which included 60+ acres of land and several baseball fields contiguous to Frist Campus. This space will expand opportunities for current athletics and future programming
Invested over $200,000 in new safety and security measures at our Red Gables campus.
Completed improvements to the lower level of Robinson Hall at Red Gables, including painting, flooring, and new furniture.
Renovated High School student gathering areas in the academics building rotunda, Tiger Cafe, and refreshed faculty commons created inspiring spaces that foster curiosity, collaboration, and innovation.
Purchased additional land and the rink at the Bellevue Baseball complex allowing for expanded opportunities for skills development for a variety of sports and provides our student-athletes with facilities that reflect the strength of our programs and spirit of competition.

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Guided by the pillars of People, Programs, and Places, we’ve not only made exciting progress together, but we are also laying the foundation for a future where our students are prepared to lead with confidence, creativity, and purpose.

^{Looking Ahead}

As we move forward, our leadership team is focused on four bold goals, each directly tied to our Strategic Vision:

Developing a framework for a Center for Teaching Excellence within each division that will support a consistent K - 12 instructional model, ensuring our students are well-prepared for the future and that our educators are continually growing.
Cultivating academic excellence and fostering intellectual curiosity are at the core of an Ensworth education. We will continue to provide meaningful opportunities for students to deepen their learning and to recognize and celebrate their achievements.
Charting the course for facilities that match the caliber of our people and programs through a comprehensive campus master plan.
Launching a Campaign Planning Study to carefully and thoughtfully assess Ensworth’s readiness to chart a bold future through a comprehensive campaign.

Resource

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Strategic Vision

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OUR NORTH STAR ———

Ensworth empowers students to lead and shape the future.

People

———

Surrounding our Students with Exceptional Educators

Program

———

Driving Academic Excellence Educating Beyond the Classroom Igniting Leadership for Impact

Places

———

Creating Spaces to Deliver our Mission & Cultivate Community

FOUNDATIONAL ELEMENTS ———

Community: The Foundation for Ensworth

Philanthropy and Stewardship: Ensuring Continued Strength

Board of Trustees: Supporting Initiatives

Strategic Pillars

PILLAR ———

Surrounding our Students with Exceptional Educators

PILLAR ———

Driving Academic Excellence

PILLAR ———

Educating Beyond the Classroom

PILLAR ———

Igniting Leadership for Impact

PILLAR ———

Creating Spaces to Deliver our Mission & Cultivate Community

Guided by the pillars of People, Programs, and Places, we’ve not only made exciting progress together, but we are also laying the foundation for a future where our students are prepared to lead with confidence, creativity, and purpose.

Looking Ahead

^{OUR NORTH STAR

———}

Surrounding our Students
with Exceptional Educators

Driving Academic Excellence

Educating Beyond the Classroom

Igniting Leadership for Impact

^{FOUNDATIONAL ELEMENTS

———}

^{PILLAR

———}

^{Surrounding our Students with Exceptional Educators}

^{PILLAR

———}

^{Driving Academic Excellence}

^{PILLAR

———}

^{Educating Beyond the Classroom}

^{PILLAR

———}

^{Igniting Leadership for Impact}

^{PILLAR

———}

^{Creating Spaces to Deliver our Mission & Cultivate Community}

^{Looking Ahead}