One district’s experience

When the New York State Education Department introduced its Portrait of a Graduate (POG) framework as part of the NY Inspires initiative, districts across the state began exploring how to translate this vision into something meaningful for their students and staff. Fortunately, there are strong examples—both nationally and here in New York—of districts that have used the POG concept to articulate a clear, community-driven vision of what it means to be a high school graduate.

One of those examples is the Mohonasen Central School District in Rotterdam, NY, which has developed a Portrait that Assistant Superintendent for Curriculum and Instruction Laurel Logan-King describes as “the heartbeat of the district’s instructional vision.” While Mohonasen is currently reviewing its Portrait to ensure alignment with the state framework, Logan-King notes that several lessons from the district’s experience may help others as they embark on their own POG implementation.

“In order to make a POG meaningful, it needs to connect with local values, otherwise it becomes just a poster on the wall,” Logan-King said.

Three key themes that emerged from Mohonasen’s work—using the Portrait as a local “north star,” engaging the community throughout the process, and ensuring strong branding and integration—offer important strategies for making the work authentic, actionable and durable. Together, these concepts form a practical roadmap for districts seeking to bring the state’s vision to life.

The Portrait as your local “North Star”

Mohonasen set out to build a Portrait that reflected both statewide priorities and the character of the local community. A POG team of district administrators attended the 2019 EdLeader21 Battelle for Kids conference to study national models and then returned home to design something uniquely Mohonasen. This involved consulting a business advisory board to understand the skills employers seek and gathering extensive input from students, staff and families about what they believe a Mohonasen education should deliver. 

This collective feedback ultimately shaped six core competencies—growth orientation and knowledge, intellectual curiosity and creativity, financial literacy, teamwork and responsible citizenship, effective communication, and dynamic problem-solving with critical thinking—that became the foundation of the district’s POG (branded as the GIFTED program). 

Since then, Logan-King says that GIFTED has become much more than a vision statement. It now guides curriculum decisions, instructional planning, and the ways the district recognizes success. 

“Our teachers intentionally incorporate GIFTED into lesson and unit planning,” Logan-King explains, adding that last March an entire staff development day was devoted to the framework. In addition, leadership anchors all presentations to the Board in the GIFTED priorities, and new teachers are introduced to the program during orientation. 

“This work has become central to teaching and learning throughout Mohonasen,” she says. “Even our student recognition programs, such as the Student of the Month, are tied directly to the GIFTED attributes. Our goal is that the Portrait is visible, meaningful and relevant to students throughout their school experiences.”

Built with the community

Community voice was central from the beginning and has remained a driving force as the program continues to evolve. Ongoing feedback and local partnerships helped shape the district’s priorities, particularly around readiness for college, careers, and community life. For example, Mohonasen expanded opportunities like the First New York School Banking Program to strengthen financial literacy and infused service, teamwork, and civic responsibility into classroom activities and student leadership experiences. Even scholarship applications now encourage students to reflect on how they demonstrate GIFTED attributes in their daily lives.

“Through this shared work, I believe the community feels genuine ownership of Mohonasen’s Portrait of a Graduate and can clearly see how its values are reflected in the district’s instructional practices and student experiences,” Logan-King explains.

Branding and integration

A strong and consistent branding strategy has also helped ensure that GIFTED remains top of mind for students, staff and families. Elements of the visual identity appear on posters, calendars, postcards, mousepads, and across district communications, reinforcing the shared expectations behind the Portrait. This intentional visibility supports cultural adoption and demonstrates clear alignment between the district’s messaging and the work happening in classrooms.

But at Mohonasen, branding goes far beyond visuals. The district strategically weaves GIFTED into every aspect of school life—classrooms, hallways, newsletters, the district website, professional development sessions, and even presentations to the Board of Education. 

“For students, this means the Portrait is not an abstract concept but a lived experience, evident in lesson planning, capstone projects, leadership opportunities, and recognition programs,” Logan-King said. “Staff members, likewise, encounter the competencies throughout professional development, curriculum work, and team meetings. Together, this all helps to strengthen community trust and understanding because our families can clearly see how the district’s priorities align with what students are learning and experiencing every day.”

A Roadmap for Other Districts

Mohonasen’s work offers several replicable ideas for New York districts looking to understand how they might be able to adopt and adapt the new state POG into something that can be brought to life in meaningful and sustainable ways. At the core of their success are a series of practices that any district—regardless of size, region, or previous efforts—can adapt to their local context.

Start with a clear local vision

Mohonasen began by defining what their community believes a graduate should know and be able to do, and then aligned that vision to their framework. Now, Logan-King points out, the district is taking another step forward with their POG as they ensure alignment with the state’s framework and NY Inspires.

Engage stakeholders at every step

Business leaders, teachers, families and students were, and continue to be, active partners in shaping the district’s vision for success. Logan-King mentions that the district is engaging with their stakeholders in a variety of ways, including ongoing conversations and reflections with key members of their internal design team.

“Our goal is to make sure that every stakeholder can see themselves in this work,” she explains. “That’s a really important step for districts to consider as they start to integrate the NYS Portrait.”

Prioritize visibility and communication

A strong branding strategy and connection across all district activities and communications have helped to make Mohonasen’s GIFTED program visible, memorable, and relevant for everyone. This kind of visibility underscores not just what a Portrait of a Graduate is, but why it matters. 

Integrate deeply into instruction and culture

Curriculum, professional development, leadership messaging, and student celebrations all reinforce the Portrait’s expectations and make it a lived experience—not an abstract concept. By centering the work on who the students are and who they are becoming, Mohonasen has been able to create and support a POG that feels both community-built and instructionally grounded. 

Looking to the future

As Mohonasen reviewed the state’s new Portrait of a Graduate released this summer, the district found strong alignment with its existing GIFTED framework, making only minor adjustments. One example is financial literacy—an attribute included in Mohonasen’s Portrait but listed by the state instead as a future graduation requirement.

“The state’s framework gives us a really clear direction, and the real impact will come when districts take this structure and make it their own. Any district can do that by listening to their community, building a shared vision, and weaving it into daily practice,” Logan-King says. 

Mohonasen’s GIFTED Program

Growth Oriented and Knowledgeable

A Mohonasen student will be persistent in effort, embracing of challenges, maximizing their potential and exhibiting a growth mindset. They will learn to demonstrate resilience in the face of adversity while striving to continuously improve both academically and personally.

Intellectually Curious and Creative

A Mohonasen student will be driven to learn and understand the complexities and connections among cultures, people, groups, facts and ideas.

Financially Literate

A Mohonasen student will demonstrate fiscal awareness and discernment in all areas of money management including budgeting, saving, borrowing, investing and credit. The district offers students the choice to participate in the First New York School Banking Program at all levels.

Team Player/Responsible Citizen

A Mohonasen student will exhibit selfless behavior, be service oriented, multiculturally fluent, champions for equity, and active contributors to local, state, national and global communities.

Effective Communicator

A Mohonasen student will learn to be an active and empathetic listener who demonstrates clear, concise, confident and courteous written and oral communications skills.

Dynamic Problem Solving and Critical Thinking Skills

A Mohonasen student will learn to demonstrate effective, logical thinking to appropriately analyze and interpret data and situations as part of collaborative problem solving.