Futures Reimagined

"The underlying commitment we are making through our ECPS strategic plan is to ensure a positive life trajectory for each and every scholar in our district. The plan faces our current reality head-on, but envisions a new one that is ambitious, aspirational and attainable. We can do this."

- Matt Smith, Principal, Edgecombe Early College High School & NC Principal of the Year

To provide our students with an education that grows with their hopes and adapts to their needs, we must reinvent the way we teach—and revolutionize how our students learn. And that’s exactly what we’re doing, with your help. Edgecombe County Public Schools (ECPS) is proud to introduce Futures Reimagined, a bold five-year strategic plan that is rooted in feedback from our community. Futures Reimagined invests in each student individually and empowers them to forge their own future.

Our students’ road to success does not end on the graduation stage.

The educational foundation we provide must reinforce our students’ resilience and evolve with them—all while helping them realize their dreams, follow their passions and frame their future.

For the Full Strategic 2019-24 Plan click HERE

The History Behind

"In order for our entire community to meet the challenges of the 21st century, we needed to come together and define who we are and what we care about. Our graduate aims are not just a vision for students or schools, but for all of Edgecombe County."

- Daniel Riley, Leadership Coach and Blue Ribbon Commissioner

A strong school system is the foundation for a strong community--and vice versa. That’s why we created the Blue Ribbon Commission on Educational Equity several years ago. Through the commission, we gathered feedback about what students need from parents, students themselves, business executives, elected officials, nonprofit partners, faith leaders and more.

We heard about our community’s students and the challenges they face--as well as the resilience they already have and the ways we can help them persevere in school and life. We learned more about our students’ dreams and what they need from our school system to achieve them. We listened to suggestions about how we can focus on the whole child through our equity initiatives. The list goes on. Your feedback became our graduate aims and priorities. Futures Reimagined truly is our community’s strategic plan.

For example, in one recent course ECPS students focused on design projects geared toward mental health. One team came up with a brilliant idea: mobile mental health programs through which communities in underserved areas receive free mental health care. Another recommended taking mobile game stations into high-risk areas. When children and teens have a way to play--an opportunity many of us take for granted--they are more likely to make healthy life choices. Projects like these not only help our students find their purpose and passion, but also build their community engagement and global and cultural awareness.

Every new program we’re incorporating into our schools focuses on these and other graduate aims.

Through purpose maps, we’re helping students discover their interests and understand their purpose in creative ways. Our diversified schedules mean that students no longer have to choose a traditional science or math course, but instead can choose gardening or coding--often helping them find a career or hobby they are passionate about. Our advisory courses, sometimes called “meta moments,” ensure that students can focus on building relationships with adults and peers--a skill that translates into every future workplace and healthy personal lives as well.

Through Futures Reimagined, we’re focused on the whole student so on graduation day, they cross the stage with confidence in their future, their purpose and their passion.

ECPS Strategic Plan 2019-24