A public school system in the southwest corner of Connecticut had secured funding from the Barr Foundation to support its “Portrait of a Graduate” initiative, designed to express the community’s aspirations for the qualities and foundational skills it wants to see reflected in its graduating students as they continue on their academic or professional journeys as adults. Having already completed early work on the project, the Board of Education wanted to measure community awareness of the project, gauge how closely their work is seen as aligning with the spirit of the “Portrait,” and create an opportunity to address open questions or concerns about the initiative.

City Square Associates conducted focus groups with stakeholders from across the community: teachers, students, administrators, parents of current students, alumni, business owners, and residents of the town. The goal was to hear from a representative cross-section of the town, understanding that each sector would have varying kinds of vested interest in or experience with the town’s student population. To build this diverse sample, we worked directly with local town administrators to recruit respondents from a variety of sources—community organizations, social media, email listservs—and made the effort to ensure that participation was as inclusive and convenient as possible by way of paid incentives and virtual participation.

These focus group sessions served an invaluable role in understanding the differences in awareness and attitudes towards the project among these different constituent groups. It also provided the opportunity for parents, teachers, students, and residents to weigh in, ask questions, and ultimately feel as though the Portrait was truly reflective of the community as a whole. The findings were shared with the town’s committee for the grant, who used the input to further refine implementation and communication of their work around the project.