2028 Goal Adoption Preview — What Your Board Should Be Preparing Right Now

December 14, 2027

Last week I walked you through the five things your December board meeting must accomplish. The second was previewing the 2028 goal-setting process.

This week I want to go deeper — because the difference between a board that adopts measurable goals by February and a board that still has draft goals on the April agenda is decided in the six weeks between mid-December and the end of January.

Here is what your board should be preparing right now.

What to prepare now: The data that matters.

January is the best month for goal-setting. The 2027 annual data is available. The fall semester data is fresh. The board has a full year of Progress Monitoring data from October and November.

But data does not organize itself. Someone has to decide what matters, gather it, and present it so the board can make a decision. Your superintendent should have on the January board agenda a 2028 Goal Data Packet that includes:

  • The 2027 baseline data for each goal — where the district started and where it ended
  • The current trajectory for each goal area — trend line projected into 2028
  • The student group disaggregation — a goal that looks good on aggregate but reveals a fifteen-point gap is not a goal that has been achieved
  • The resource implications — what would it take to accelerate progress or turn around a flat goal area

Districts like Wichita (KS) prepare this well. Their January board packet includes a one-page “Goal Data Dashboard” for each goal area — baseline, current, trend, and student group breakdown. Tell your superintendent now — in December — that the January packet needs the same format.

What to prepare now: The community input process.

Here is where I see boards lose the most time. A board drafts goals in a February work session and adopts them in March — but never asked the community what it thinks. Then the community pushes back. Not because the goals are wrong. Because the community was not part of the conversation.

Here is the timeline that works.

December to January: Publish the year-end governance report and invite community input on 2028 priorities. A survey link at the end of the report, a “community priorities” agenda item, or a fifteen-minute public hearing — all work.

February: Publish the draft 2028 goals for public review. The community has a formal window — twenty-eight days is standard — to respond.

March or April: Adopt final 2028 goals incorporating community input.

The total community input period should be ninety to one hundred twenty days. Not one meeting where the public is invited to comment on a final draft that has already been written. Decide the timeline now and communicate it clearly.

What to prepare now: The superintendent’s work plan.

The superintendent cannot build a responsive 2028 goal set if the board has not communicated what it needs and when. Here is the conversation the board president should have with the superintendent.

By what date does the board need the Goal Data Packet? What format does the board want — one-page dashboard per goal area, longer narrative, or both? What level of specificity does the board expect in the draft goal language? “Improve student achievement” is not a goal. “Increase the percentage of third-grade students reading at or above grade level from 62 percent to 70 percent by May 2028” is a goal.

Does the board want the superintendent to propose targets, or does the board want to set the targets? I recommend the superintendent proposes based on the data. Then the board evaluates whether the targets are ambitious enough.

Get the superintendent clear direction in December. The superintendent who knows what the board expects by December 15 is preparing the data packet on December 16.

The connection to the baseline-gathering work.

If your board has been working through the fall arc, this December preparation connects directly to October and November. October’s data review established the current trajectory. November’s goal-drafting work produced goal language based on real baseline data. December closes the loop: the baseline data becomes the starting point for the 2028 data packet.

If your board has not done the baseline gathering, start now. The data is still available. But do not skip the baseline work because December feels late. A January goal with real baseline data is worth more than an August goal with good intentions.

The bottom line.

Goal-setting is not an annual event that happens in February. It is a three-month process that starts in December. The board that gathers the data, plans the community input, and communicates the superintendent’s work plan in December will adopt goals that are measurable, publicly supported, and operationally feasible by March.

The board that waits until February to start asking what data it needs will adopt goals in May — or not at all.

The difference is decided now.

Your free CTA: Reply to this email with the keyword Roadmap and I will send you the 2028 Governance Roadmap — goal adoption timeline calendar, January organizational meeting agenda template, Q1 governance calendar, and superintendent evaluation cycle checklist. Everything you need to build a complete governance launch plan for the first quarter of 2028.

Your paid CTA: I am offering a 2028 Governance Launch Coaching Package for boards ready to execute this plan with direct support — three virtual sessions with your board president, superintendent, and board governance committee. Session one covers December goal review and data packet finalization. Session two covers January organizational meeting prep — officer selection rubrics, committee charges, and governance calendar with named outcomes. Session three covers the February first data review facilitation. Reply to this email for pricing and availability.

This continues the December column of the October-December Fall Governance Execution arc. The arc kicked off with the three-month execution plan covering the October data review, the November fall progress check, and the year-end governance reset. This piece builds directly on the baseline-gathering work from October and November. Last week: the year-end governance reset and the five things every December board meeting must produce (read it). Next week: why the superintendent evaluation starts in December — not April — and the 45-day rule every board should know. Subscribe at effectiveschoolboards.com to continue the series.