First and foremost,
Cumberland Valley School District is committed to working to ensure that
all students meet the requirements to receive a high school diploma and
have an equal opportunity to do so. Our students typically meet the
bulk, if not all, of these requirements, including proficiency in state
testing, by the end of grade 10 or 11. During this time, students master
and demonstrate the knowledge and skills necessary to achieve a high
school diploma; their educational capstone. Economically, during this
time, students “learn to earn.” Cumberland Valley students can
accelerate through the academic requirements by completing high school
courses while in middle school, attending Term III (courses offered
mid-June to late-July), by taking courses offered by the District
online outside of the school day/year or through dual enrollment at
local colleges and universities.
Once they begin to reach their capstone and move beyond, students make
the transition from “learning to earn” to “earning to learn.” For some
of our students, that transition may conclude directly after high school
with a job placement. For others, the transition concludes after
community college, advanced technical or trade school, or upon
completion of a four-year degree from a competitive college or
university. And for others, the transition will be after the completion
of a post-secondary degree from highly competitive colleges, universities,
or the military academies, or upon completion of a graduate degree. In
all cases, the transition needs to ultimately end at a location in the
economy that provides a life-sustaining wage, a low
wage-to-educational-debt ratio, and an understanding that regardless of
where they enter the economy, holding that place or advancing from that
place requires the skills, knowledge, and commitment necessary to
endeavor to be a life-long learner. During this time students set a
critical foundation, a cornerstone, on which they continue building the
skills to sustain and advance their place in the economy. As they set
their economic cornerstone, every student should be asking themselves
the following four questions:
1. How do I transform my skills and passions into a meaningful place in the economy?
2. How far have I come, how far do I need to go, and what do I have to do to reach that place?
3. What opportunities are available that prepare and propel me toward that place?
4. Once I arrive at that place, what understandings, skills,
and motivations must I possess to hold or advance from that
place?
In pursuit of this mission and vision, it is not the intent of
Cumberland Valley School District to work outside of existing
structures, to do away with current programs that are leading to the
success of our students, to lessen the important role that outstanding
educators play in the lives of their students, to fail to value the
caring educational community we share, or to disregard our proud CV
traditions. The vision and mission are about layering 21st century
educational opportunities into an already proven educational system so
that Cumberland Valley School District continues to be a leader in
public education, a school district of choice for parents who seek an
outstanding public education for their children, and a vehicle to
successfully lift our students into the county’s valued workforce over
the next 50 years.