The mission of the Yolo County Office of Education is to meet current and future needs of Yolo County by serving as a regional resource to students, parents, school districts, agencies, and businesses through collaborative leadership, support and services.

The County Superintendent serves as Executive Secretary for the Board of Education. The Office of the Superintendent of Schools is the intermediate unit between the state and local districts. A record of all official acts and of all the proceedings of the County Board of Education must be kept. The Superintendent coordinates the use of the course of study and the use of state textbooks. During recent years new responsibilities were added by the legislature in the area of community schools, credential auditing, oversight for fiscal planning, program implementation and ensuring financial health of school districts.

COE has initiated three focus areas in addressing how we do business and where we will go as an organization. The three themes are Leadership, Accountability, and Capacity-Building. To transform a visionary plan into action requires leadership. Leaders need to be accountable for the institutional vision and action taken. And the element that defines the degree that the first two focus areas are met is the outcome of capacity-building of the organization in its service and its intellectual capital. The organization will continue to develop these three focus areas in its planning, work, and evaluation in the 2012-13 year.

The following descriptors were developed by the YCOE Leadership Team:

1. Leadership creates a culture of change characterized by high levels of:
   • interactivity
   • communication
   • resource sharing; and
   • involvement.
2. An effective leader knows when to lead, when to mentor, and when to follow.
3. A pragmatic visionary who is proactively searching for new opportunities.
4. A successful leader communicates vision with passion and good-will.
5. An efficient leader is decisive, knows when to take risks and when to reevaluate and change direction.
6. Leadership, accountability, and capacity-building are interdependent.

1. Cross-divisional activities and sharing of knowledge facilitates accountability.
2. High standards build accountability resulting in credibility, clear focus, and effective delivery.
3. Use tools such as needs assessment, feedback, and evaluation to plan, implement, and adjust to meet the goals of the organization.

1. Set clear expectations and provide the tools necessary to meet the needs of our staff and clients.
2. Involvement across divisions builds a common language and a sense of community.
3. Support and empower employees at all levels.
4. Momentum attracts partners and increases community involvement.
5. Enhancing the social, emotional, and intellectual climate and physical surroundings increases creative productivity.
6. Effectiveness, efficiency, and credibility improve our capacity.