New Hamilton County Schools Superintendent Justin Robertson delivered his first State of the System address during a virtual event Tuesday hosted by Harrison Elementary.
"We have truly thrived in spite of the pandemic," Robertson said. "Over the past year, we have achieved a lot of goals, and we've remained committed to Future Ready 2023, which was adopted by our school board almost four years ago."
The goals of the strategic plan, Future Ready 2023, include accelerating student achievement, expanding post-secondary opportunities, efficient and effective operations, supporting and retaining high-quality teachers and engaging the community.
The first part of the program was a video focused on the system's achievements and how schools dealt with the challenges during the pandemic over the past year.
The rest of the address focused on ways the school system can help all children thrive, including organizational shifts to improve opportunities and access and remove barriers to learning.
"This is going to be the driver in our commitment to equity in Hamilton County Schools," Robertson said, adding that 70% of Hamilton County students have experienced barriers that have prevented them from achieving at high levels.
The organizational shifts involve how student achievement is talked about and how support is provided to different student groups, as well as the system's commitment to moving equity forward and in recognizing its responsibility to meet the needs of students.
"We're committing tonight to make organizational shifts to ensure that we are meeting the needs of students where they are," Robertson said. "We have to do much more as a system to ensure that every student is receiving the supports that they need to move forward."
(READ MORE: Superintendent Justin Robertson shares his plans, goals for Hamilton County Schools)
Among those shifts is a change in position for longtime Hamilton County Schools employee Neelie Parker, who most recently served as chief of schools. Parker is being shifted to the role of chief of opportunities and access, Robertson told the Times Free Press before the address.
In her new position, she will reimagine departments such as Exceptional Education. Until now, the Exceptional Education Department has been focused more heavily on compliance than learning, and Parker will realign the department's goals so compliance is met but learning is prioritized, Robertson said.
In the next 60 to 90 days, Parker will meet with teams in that department and look at making organizational adjustments or shifting assets within the department to reflect the system's priorities.
In addition to the allocation of talent, the system's budget will reflect those priorities as well.
Schools with higher needs will be staffed in a way that will be supportive of those needs and helpful in removing barriers to learning, Robertson said.
During the address, Robertson also talked about Hamilton County Schools' partnership with the city of Chattanooga through the Community Forward program, which connects students and their families with the support they need to thrive, he said.
He invited Chattanooga Mayor Tim Kelly to speak at the event about his commitment to the program, which provides funding to put program coordinators in seven schools in the Midtown learning community whose job is to connect students with nonprofit resources in the community.
"Building a culture that values high-quality education is the single most important thing that I can do as a city mayor and that I think we can all be doing because that ... is the thing that will change the most things downstream for our community," Kelly said. "And if you believe that, then the question becomes, 'Will you put your money where your mouth is?' and for me, that was very simple."
Contact Emily Crisman at ecrisman@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6508.