For 100 years, The Branson School has prepared young people for lives of consequence. At the dawn of our second century, we are healthy and strong, with a well-deserved reputation for academic excellence thanks to the work of outstanding and committed faculty, parents and alumni of previous eras. We also face serious challenges: our students live in a dramatic time of accelerated and daunting technological, scientific and environmental change; a time when long standing assumptions about social cohesion, common purpose and even the nature of truth are becoming frayed; a time when high-achieving students nationwide are experiencing epidemic levels of stress and alienation.
While Branson’s duty to each student will always include an excellent preparation for a demanding higher education, our community exists for a purpose well beyond the academic success of our graduates in college. Branson’s mission calls us to do all we can to ensure that when our graduates are 35 and 55 and 75, they will lead fulfilling lives characterized by integrity, joy, leadership and service to others.
This strategic plan is our response. Building upon Branson’s firm commitment to rigorous intellectual inquiry, we seized the opportunity to look forward, and to determine what skills, values and mindsets Branson students will need to thrive and to lead in their world as adults. Our students will need to think critically, creatively and ethically across many disciplines to become effective, inventive and inclusive members of diverse global teams. They will need to be deeply thoughtful about matters of justice, community, and integrity, and build skills to engage their fellow citizens from a wide array of backgrounds and perspectives to serve the common good. They will need to harness their intellect, passions, values and relationships to create their own joyful, meaningful lives based on a purpose larger than themselves. Guided by this plan, we will ensure that we teach students these skills, and create a Branson education that is not just preparation, but transformation.
“A Look Ahead. A Purpose Beyond” is the product of the input and extensive work of scores of students, teachers, alumni and parents from across the Branson community. It introduces our new mission statement and core community values. It calls on us to align every element of the Branson experience with these values, to redouble our commitment to the school’s greatest strengths and traditions while also inventing new ones, and to actively extend our reach beyond the Branson gates. Working together on the new initiatives outlined in this plan, we can create a Branson education filled with relevant intellectual inquiry and joy. We invite you to join us in this compelling work, and in this exciting new era for our school.