What is a School’s Mission and Vision Statement and why is it important?

At the time of choosing a school to attend as a student or as a worker, it is always useful to have a look to the institution’s Mission and Vision Statements in order to see if they are aligned with one’s values and core beliefs. But for a school, why is it important to create these statements?.

When establishing a mission or vision statement, the schools are creating an outline in where the core values, purposes, objectives, and beliefs are reflected. These statements work as compass that guides the educators towards the direction agreed by the school community. It is the responsibility of the teachers and school administrators to make decisions that affect the school community based on the values and purposes that are present in the mission and vision statements.

It is also important to point out that depending on the type of school or educational center, these statements can vary and result different from each other, and this is because the kind of people attending to these schools and the developmental stage that they are at (puberty, infancy, childhood, etc) are different and so have to be certain purposes and objectives. Nevertheless, it is also true, that even counting on these differences, there are certain values and beliefs that should always be present in these statements and schools, such as respect or tolerance towards diversity.

In conclusion, mission and vision statements are essential guidelines for the community to understand and be aware of, in order to make of the educational process an effective, safe, and meaningful experience not only for the students but for all the people that in some way take part on this procedure.