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Michigan Council for the Social Studies
Strategic Planning for 2014-2019

MISSION

The mission of the Michigan Council for the Social Studies is to recognize and promote effective social studies in education to our members and stakeholders.

 

OBJECTIVES

  1. All Michigan students will meet or exceed expectations on state or national social studies assessments.
  2. Every teacher of social studies in Michigan will have the depth of knowledge necessary to teach social studies as defined by the Michigan Curriculum Framework
  3. All Michigan citizens will actively participate in the democratic process of decision making, including elections.

 STRATEGIES 

Strategy 1 We will develop and implement an aggressive plan for marketing and public relations 
Strategy 2 We will develop and implement a strategically sound professional development initiative to generate success in student achievement 
Strategy 3 We will stimulate public discourse on public issues and voter participation. 
Strategy 4 We will develop effective collaboration with public and private sectors 
Strategy 5 We will acquire necessary resources to accomplish our mission and objectives 


STRATEGY 1

Develop and implement an aggressive plan for marketing and public relations.

Specific Result 1-A Focus on MCSS District Representatives and MCSS Board Work
Through professional training and a strategic organization of the MCSS Executive Board Calendar of activities, each MCSS district representatives’ role will be coordinated to increase the service and visibility each MCSS District Representative provides to his/her MCSS District.

ACTION STEPS

  • Provide training to district representatives with skills and latest information need to promote social studies in the MCSS District
  • Set up yearly meeting(s) with MCSS District Representative and ISD/RESA personnel
  • Set up a Committee/Chair on the MCSS Executive Board as a resource liaison for MCSS District Representatives in setting up at least one special event( professional learning or outreach/political information relative to social studies) by each MCSS District Representative to be held at least once yearly at the appropriate ISD/RESA
  • Send a letter in fall to every ISD/RESA and Superintendent introducing the MCSS District Representative and indicate services MCSS District Representative can do for each. Include a photo of the MCSS District representative and the MCSS District map
  • Have the MCSS District Map on the Web site with Representatives photo (see Action Step 3)
  • Have MCSS District Representatives write at least one article per year for the MCSS Memorandum telling about the good things going on in the MCSS District.(see Action Step3)
  • Create brochures to advertise and to assist in member recruitment
  • Put MCSS poster/ brochure in the RESA/ISD
  • Create an op-ed for each MCSS District Representative to send to their newspapers

Specific Result 1-B Focus on parents/guardians-
Develop and implement a campaign to Increase parent/guardian awareness of the importance of social studies in the curriculum and for success in the 21st century. 

ACTION STEPS

  • Develop communication brochures for parents/guardians that are topic specific that draw a bridge between social studies and current events.
  • Develop very relevant Parent/Guardian letters that teachers can download and put on the back of parent communications or in newsletter( one for each strand of social studies summarizing what are the important concepts (see Action1)
  • Develop communication brochures for parents and educators that are topic specific that draw a bridge between social studies and current events
  • Provide a Parent Social studies night at the MCSS Executive Board representatives home district featuring maps, current events, children’s literature that are referenced to Social Studies CEUs
  • Create a brochure or pamphlet for parents/guardians with fun social studies things to do over the summer.
  • Have a book review page in Memorandum or on MCSS website on good social studies books for parents and students
  • Create a "Parent’s Sure Fire Question Page" containing a list of sure fire questions to ask kids what they have learned in social studies today. They questions must call for more than a yes or no answer.
  • Expand parent’s awareness of social studies as and umbrella for civic, economic, and cultural literacy in relation to preparative in the 3 Cs (college, career, and citizenship)

Specific Result 1-C Focus on the General Public 
Develop and implement a plan to enhance the public, business, media, legislative awareness that social studies are fundamental to an educated citizenry and its importance in the 21st century.

ACTION STEPS

  • Create Posters to highlight services and philanthropy of the organization.
  • Have a website for guest celebrities to tell what they think about Democracy, social studies , economics and then have a discussion forum section that follows (e.g. speaker on African, Hispanic , Asian, Arab American representation in textbooks, Judge Warren and First Gentleman on democracy)
  • Increase public awareness of social studies with Updated slogan and design posters featuring Michigan celebrities with a catchy slogan about the importance of social studies (e.g. Derek Jeter, Lindsey Tarpley, Magic Johnson, Al Pacinco)
  • Send the slogans/posters electronically to MEA Voice, MFT Newsletter and other content organizations to social studies
  • increase media awareness of importance of social studies by sending in op-ed and letters to the editors( See Action 1)
  • Have a place on line that features short essays by well known people on why social studies are important in their life.
  • Submit PSAs to various radio and newspapers
  • Create a printed MCSS Status Report that highlights the number of services to teachers and students, special projects, MCSS Strategic Plan update, Sampling of achievement. (See MCSS’s Status Report) Mail it to all MCSS members as well as ISDs and other social studies organizations.

 

 STRATEGY 2

Develop and implement a strategically sound professional initiative to generate success in student achievement.

Specific Results 2-A Focus on Student Involvement

  • Increase involvement by students with better MCSS Board planning focused directly on students by enhancing professional development initiatives for educators to use with students to facilitate participation
  • Greate a student or Youth committee on the MCSS Board that serves as an educational resource for students and provides networking opportunities.
  • Create a position on the MCSS Board for a pre-service representative as a Board position. This could be an appointed position with references given to the Youth Committee
  • Definite job aid would need to be created to facilitate the best use of a student/youth on the board.

Specific Results 2-B Focus on showcasing student work

  • Through a coordinated effort, create more student events or forums to showcase student social studies projects/work
  • Hold or video and show a Student Quiz Bowl at Conference.
  • Show poster winners from previous Olympiad to advertise for next year’s Olympiad.
  • Show Olympiad PowerPoint’s at our meals.
  • New poster contest, perhaps on current topic (election etc).Highlight in the MCSS Status Report (See Strategy 1)
  • Hold regional Olympiads at ISDs, in additional to the Sate level Olympiad.
  • Get University Professors to require college students to attend MCSS conference.
  • Social Studies Week-develop forms and theme for a week and be the catalyst of this in districts.


Specific Result 2-C Focus on helping teachers raise student achievement

  • Create forums and products for educators to help teachers target on and raise student achievement
  • Develop member E-groups that target specific student needs by grade level and subject area with information administrators, supervisors and coordinators.
  • Resource Lesson Plan Book as a separate project or do CD in place of.
  • Poster Fair Session given by teachers, room like exhibit hall, teachers show one exceptional lesson on poster board; teacher is there to answer questions and offer additional tips on their lesson. Lesson would be submitted via email and could be put on CD. CD’s could be sold afterwards for anyone who couldn’t attend ---rubric would need to be developed about what the expectations for our lessons are. Committee should approve each lesson, or maybe we should "invite only."
  • Anything we require via rubric should mirror what the state and GLCEs are requiring.
  • Website-preview lesson on website and then buys rest of lesson for $0.99 like "iTunes."

SPECIFIC RESUTLT 2-D Focus on collaboration with other organizations

  • Establish and expand relationships and projects with other professional organizations on student projects.
  • Work collaboratively to create student projects utilizing technology.
  • Seek grants funding collaborative projects of student work.

 

STRATEGY 3 

Stimulate public discourse on public policy and participation in elections.

Specific Result 3-A Focus on Community Forums

  • Plan and sponsor or coco-sponsor community forums on a variety of issues and topics that connect or concern areas that MCSS represents. These forums would cover issues from politics to education.
  • MCSS would serve as facilitators of these forums. However that does not mean that we as a board could not take stands on issues we feel strongly about.
  • MCSS Board creates a committee to plan the forums. This planning would include:
    1. Create a list of public organizations to become involved in the project. Some of the suggested organizations that were mentioned were: The National Organization of Women (N.O.W.), The Urban League, and The American Federation of Teachers (A.F.T.)
    2. Invite public libraries to sponsor some community forums.
    3. MCSS should set up a blog on our web-site to help launch forums. In this way we could get an idea of what people from various committee units have in the way of concerns.
    4. Put on a "question-of-the-month" to help spark some dialog on a particular topic on the MCSS web.
    5. Generate a list of issues for the forums.
    6. Hold a forum as a Keynote session at an MCSS with a panel of distinguished speakers. Allow for public to take part (As panel at the 2007 MCSS Conference. Lansing is a good site)

Specific Result 3-B Focus MCSS Members communicating with Policy Makers
Increase the effectiveness of and influence of MC SS members with local, state and national policy makers.

ACTION STEPS

  • Expand the public’s awareness of social studies as an umbrella for civic, economic, historic and geographic literacy in relationship to preparation for the 3 Cs ( college, career, and citizenship
  • Increase members’ knowledge and understanding of educational policies and their effect on social studies education in particular
  • Have a feature on website to give brief updates and talking points on pertinent issues
  • Obtain software to facilitate talking points, MCSS members and state legislators merging
  • Hold training for effective communication to policy makers(The Power of One Training)
  • Hold a Legislative Summits on a regular basis( after elections)
  • Create an Ambassador Directory of MCSS members who will contact legislators.
  • Have each MCSS Board member contact his/her state representative and senator each fall for an update on what’s new in social studies.

Specific Results 3-C Focus Public Elections
Create a plan to increase voter participation

  • Establish a liaison position on the Board to work with other organizations in efforts to increase voter participation and to work in the process

 

STRATEGY 4 

Develop effective collaboration with public and private entities

Specific Result 4 A- Focus - Seek Funding
Obtain funding from private companies to support programming and education.

ACTION STEPS

  • Seek grant support as an individual organization and as part of a consortium.
  • Improving existing funding partnerships
  • we currently have a number of sponsors who support various individual projects. Invite these sponsors to become "annual" sponsors who make a larger, annual contribution in exchange for a more permanent presence in MCSS literature and activities. One valuable incentive might be a banner on the website, including a link to the corporate homepage. We might also consider selling advertisement in the Memorandum and/or publish articles endorsing certain companies and their products or services. We could consider doing the same on the webpage.
  • Consider purchasing our own AV equipment (projectors, DVD players etc. and renting these to conference presenters as a way to increase revenues.
  • Seek Partnerships with private company’s .Possible companies to finance our electrical-audio-visual needs...IBM, Sony, Hewlett-Packard, Fuji, etc.
  • Partnerships with public entities (i.e. Michigan Department of Education)
  • Opportunities exist to develop financial and academic partnerships with public entities such as the Michigan Department of Education, the National Council for Social Studies, the National Endowment for the Humanities, etc. In return for financial support the MCSS would provide expertise in the development of new instructional products as well as distribution channels for new materials.
  • Seek opportunities to collaborate with Intermediate School Districts (ISDs) and Regional Education Services Administrations (RESAs) to provide joint professional develop days.
  • Create a cadre of presenters or menu of workshops that MCSS could sponsor for a fee
  • Generate new products for online store such as books, instructional materials, CD’s, multimedia, Computer-based Instructional materials, tee-shirts

Specific Result 4-B Focus on Partnerships with non-traditional organizations (i.e. Big Brothers and Sisters) 
Increase the important role by becoming involved with informal education organizations such as the Big Brothers and Sisters organization.

  • These are non-traditional, but important aspects of social studies education for community service and civic activism, while at the same time providing opportunities for public and private funding of activities related to the services provided.
  • Seek out other partnerships that would mutually benefit.
  • Look at opportunities for service learning and the K-12 Citizen Involvement P4 in the new GLCE and HSCEs

Specific Result 4-C- Focus Partner/sponsor special events
Increase involvement in developing and/or promoting special events that promote social studies.

  • Establish a social Studies Week comparable to Michigan History Week. Others include GIS Day, Constitution Day, and Martin Luther King Day.
  • Work with MI Legislature to establish a resolution for the Social Studies Appreciation Day

Specific Result 4-D Focus Academic partnerships 
Plan academic partnerships with colleges, universities, Virtual Universities

  • Plan to offer university credit opportunities in special multiple day summer opportunities
  • Increase cooperative ventures with other social studies organizations as well as subjects such as reading, math, technology, science, art, etc.

Specific Result 4- E Focus MCSS Website Use
Establish the value of the MCSS website as a portal for Michigan Social Studies teachers looking for information and materials relevant to social studies education, including professional development opportunities.

  • Further development of the MCSS web presence is a first step in this process.
  • Acquire funding to expand the website capability
  • Marketing MCSS distribution channels/expertise (i.e. I-books Michigan History Digital Storybooks project)
  • MCSS has a built in base of supporters and consumers whom we can reach and who trust the judgment and recommendations of the organization. We should begin developing and pursuing strategies to market this potential to both private and public organizations with products and materials they wish to disseminate.

Specific Result 4-F Focus Sponsor National Collaboration Event
Strengthen collaborative relationships with educational organizations at the national level and state levels

  • Plan to host national events. Involve other state and regional social studies organization’s (i.e. MGA, MCEE. MCHE, Civics MSSSA)
  • Create a plan for registration fees that benefits the host as well as other organizations and that shares in the costs of the event.

 

STRATEGY 5

Acquire necessary financial resources to accomplish our mission and objectives.

Specific Results 5-A Focus Streamlining

ACTION STEPS

  • Establish a study to look at ways to cut cost. Consider paper costs.
  • Do a benefits cost analysis Look at things that have been done in the past that are not relevant or may not be feasible in this 21st century
  • Study the best time and place to have the MCSS State Conference. Look at winter, location and cost of venue when completing the study.

Specific Results 5-B Focus Membership
Increase membership by offering more services seen as attractive to members and stakeholders.

ACTION STEPS

  • Create and Identify educational internships
  • Survey both members and nonmembers to create an opportunity that services their interests
  • Offer special desirable incentives for joining( perhaps getting donated items as incentives)

 

Specific Results 5-C Revenue Stream

  • Establish "Teacher Professional Learning Scholarships" that would cover the cost of attending MCSS conference- registration, substitute, mileage and hotel that are offer by local business groups such as Lions, Elks, Kwinas or Rotary or businesses such as State Farm or Blue Cross Publicize the scholarships" as giving back and building democracy or being a good citizen.
  • Work to have new teachers’ membership to a professional content organization be picked up by their union cost and district shared equally as part of the required professional development.
  • Establish "Mentors" for hire. Retired teachers or administrators who will go in to the social studies classroom for the day and teach a lesson for a donation" by the district of teacher to MCSS Olympiad
  • Create networking opportunities for companies, educators and students that offer what is of interest
  • Develop a community fundraising campaign to include partnering associations, which will lead to increased monetary support.


 


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Copyright © 2024

Michigan Council for the Social Studies

A 2022-23, 2023-24 Gold Star Affiliate of the  National Council for the Social Studies

13565 Port Sheldon St., Holland, MI 49424

Office Manager Mandy Laninga

Direct Line: 616-796-1502 

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