Pattonville creates a Portrait of a Graduate showcasing skills for all students

The Pattonville School district has developed its Portrait of a Graduate, a framework that establishes a vision of skills students need in order to be successful in life post-graduation. A Portrait of a Graduate represents a school district's vision for the 21st century skills, character traits and social-emotional competencies that students need to succeed in college, career and life. The Portrait of a Graduate is meant to complement academics as a measure of preparedness for life and presents a more well-rounded view of what success looks like.

“Creating Pattonville’s Portrait of a Graduate is about more than just academics,” superintendent Dr. Barry Nelson said. “It represents our school and community commitment to developing well-rounded students equipped with the skills, character traits and resilience needed for success in all aspects of life. This initiative is a collective vision from our school community, ensuring that Pattonville students are prepared for success.”

The development of Pattonville’s Portrait of a Graduate was a community effort. The district established a committee of students, parents, staff, community members, educators from area colleges, military personnel and more to represent the broad scope of individuals in the community. The committee discussed the responsibilities and goals of public schools in their local community, as well as the traits and skills that students will need the most to be successful in adult life and ultimately worked together to create a collective picture of success for Pattonville students.

The committee established the following six skills a graduate needs to be successful in life and the characteristics of each.

• Innovation — Generates original concepts; thinks forward; and builds new paths

• Communication — Shares information clearly in a variety of formats; interacts and relates with cultural understanding; and listens to understand

• Compassion — Empathizes with others; nurtures and shows respect; and remains calm and understanding in challenging situations

• Critical Thinking — Solves problems to create an impact; considers multiple perspectives; and strategizes next steps

• Collaboration — Creates together; contributes to reaching a goal; interacts respectfully; and

• Resilience — Adapts to change; learns from experiences; and persists when facing a challenge.

To illustrate the six skills, the district enlisted the help of high school students to develop a logo to represent a Portrait of a Graduate. Two designs were brought to the district Comprehensive School Improvement Plan (CSIP) committee, which voted and selected a logo created by senior Gabby Kellner. After hers was selected, Kellner worked with the committee and district graphic designer Emily Groneck to finalize a design that represented the skills.

“I can honestly say it was an absolute honor to talk to Emily and get to work with an actual graphic designer,” Kellner said. “When you’re in high school and you’re going to talk to a professional and they treat you like an equal, it’s a great experience. She made this design what it is. I built the foundation and she built what everybody sees. But she still saw potential in my design, which feels pretty good.”

On May 14, the Pattonville Board of Education was presented information from the district teaching and learning department about the development of the Portrait of a Graduate, including a video by Kellner about the creation of the logo. 

“I’ve been in Pattonville since kindergarten and I’ve loved every step of the way,” Kellner said. “So it kind of felt like a thank you, like this is what I’ve taken away from my experience here, too. I’m walking away with my critical thinking skills, my compassion, my resilience. I just did a metal and welding summer camp and you saw those skills being transferred into a hands-on trade career. I think these skills are not just for college. They’re not just for high schoolers. They’re for people. And I think they were well chosen. I think overall, it’s representative of Pattonville students.”

The committee's work will continue into this school year, with the next discussions focusing on how to implement and showcase the framework across the district.

Establishing a Portrait of a Graduate is part of the district’s CSIP, the district’s five-year strategic plan approved by the board in February 2023. The first goal of CSIP is focused on student learning, and the Portrait of a Graduate is just one strategy that will support that.

See the presentation to the board

Watch Gabby Kellner discuss the logo