AASA’s Governing Board on Wednesday reworded the mission statement of the 153-year-old professional association to capture the importance of equity in public education.

The association’s revised mission now reads as follows: “AASA, The School Superintendents Association advocates for equitable access for all students to the highest quality public education and develops and supports school system leaders.”

The existing mission statement did not reference equity.

The unanimous action by AASA’s governance body follows work by AASA staff, which during the past year identified six focus areas for attention. One was to position AASA as an equity thought leader in K-12 education. The staff’s recommended rewording, which was revised slightly by the Governing Board, is considered a simple but powerful goal, allowing for both internal and external growth and alignment.

The fiscal impact on AASA will be modest, mostly covering costs to reprint, frame and mount copies of the mission statement at AASA headquarters building in Alexandria, Va. AASA was founded in 1865.

(Jay P. Goldman is editor of AASA’s Conference Daily Online.)