The benefits of the two-year commitment to strategic planning are evident in the way the Alva Public Schools are handling back-to-school plans. Strategic planning relied heavily on input from administrators, teachers, school staff and community members. Those contacts and strategies are proving helpful in facing the challenges of educating youth while protecting their health during the pandemic.

In putting together Alva's distance learning plan, committees of teachers and parents were set up to solve problems and implement a continuous learning plan. Chairman Shane Feely, who is the district c...