What is the Portrait of a Graduate?

On August 15, 2023 the Arlington Board of Education approved our District’s Portrait of a Graduate. The Portrait of a Graduate reflects our vision and shared understanding of the specific skills we believe Arlington students will need to thrive in the future.

The Portrait of a Graduate was developed during the spring of 2023 by a 24-person Portrait of a Graduate Steering Committee comprised of parents, teachers, administrators, community members, Board members, business leaders, representatives from higher education, and locally elected officials.

The committee addressed three essential questions:  

• What are our hopes, dreams and aspirations for our children?  
• What skills and mindsets do our children need to be successful in a rapidly changing and complex world?
• What are the implications for designing learning experiences for our children?

During four meetings, the committee:

1. Explored how the world is changing
2. Examined 21st Century competencies 
3. Agreed to a final list of five competencies that it believes our children need to succeed after graduating from Arlington High School. 
4. Developed a visual representation of Arlington’s Portrait of a Graduate and a defined each of the five competencies.

Arlington’s Portrait of a Graduate identifies critical thinker, adaptable citizen, empathetic citizen, problem solver, and effective communicator as the five competencies that Arlington High School graduates will need in order to be productive citizens and to succeed in the workforce of the future.

Now that we have developed a Portrait of a Graduate, the exciting work of implementing this new vision begins! My administrative team, our staff, and everyone in our community will continue to turn our Portrait into a reality for every student. The Portrait of a Graduate will drive the District’s work by guiding our goal-setting, professional learning, curriculum development, and resource allocation decisions.