[{"_1":2,"_111":-5,"_112":-5},"loaderData",{"_3":4,"_26":27},"root",{"_5":6,"_17":10,"_18":19,"_20":21,"_22":10,"_23":-5,"_24":-5,"_25":10},"user",{"_7":8,"_9":10,"_11":10,"_12":-5,"_13":-5,"_14":15,"_16":-5},"roles",[],"isAuthenticated",false,"isPremium","planName","subscriptionStatus","featureFlags",{},"insightsBudget","isDevelopmentHost","userPreferences",{},"recaptchaSiteKey","6LcvOJcUAAAAAHsB-gPGfGktcRlKpH7OTIU_dMTD","isImpersonating","impersonation","affiliateStatus","isFreedomPortal","routes/v2/article/layout",{"_28":29,"_30":31},"notFound",true,"relatedArticles",[32,76,87,99],{"_33":34,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":40,"_41":42,"_43":44,"_45":46,"_47":48,"_49":50,"_51":52,"_53":54,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":60,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":66,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},"mediaId",6378626,"mediaKeyId","2137199-9d7635d1ef916592851a3a828992ab06","parentId",2137199,"title","Kyrene outlines equity metric for proportionality in advanced coursework, gifted identification and discipline","audioSeconds",156,"startMs",8419000,"endMs",8575000,"viewUrl","/Search/View?dp=1&key=2137199-9d7635d1ef916592851a3a828992ab06&start=8419&end=8575","thumbnailUrl","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2137199-9d7635d1ef916592851a3a828992ab06/thumbnail_8419000.jpg","articleUrl","/articles/6378626/Arizona/Kyrene-outlines-equity-metric-for-proportionality-in-advanced-coursework-gifted-identification-and-discipline","mediaUrl","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6378626-d417c67e01daf787d96d20417384e98f/orig.mp4?Expires=1770440294&Signature=K9rDhpUS-UzEBvGYFb~3HtowngzHaAaLaZ1YlPQ5kf0ws~7tFq5DHUcxknwlBXbUO2AICxGnetwmEuhVLGodr4P~94hJOrGQFISz6aDAP-25GxgXKOZ0bc4MvV6-6ppEKLsoerY1yQRC32u9cNGmOacURa-mOuAhPpYbg6r8yf0CzNjuI-oD93-kwBdt7STYXAkwYamu1qZxpY60RR0bfl6jOiT1woE083WObowMxGzwmxXxZSRkJZgzRKRzW7wVQmlCid0H40oW2V4NyH2y4evUgDGoHb6QXgwF5CnJ3A2FGCGyqnijgvbk2irHR8iMdmnmK4-YPkxsn~A2NYWjcg__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","author","Kyrene Elementary District","date","2025-01-22T00:10:50Z","article","At its data retreat the Kyrene Elementary District reviewed a new equity metric that compares subgroup representation in advanced coursework, gifted identification and disciplinary actions to subgroup representation in the total student population.

How the metric works: staff said they compare the share of a subgroup (race/ethnicity, English-language learners, economically disadvantaged, students with disabilities) in a target population (for example, advanced coursework) with the subgroup’s share of the district enrollment. Cells that are within plus or minus 3 percentage points are judged proportionate; a subgroup that is more than 3 points above or below is flagged as over- or underrepresented. The district presented a dashboard showing baseline values for 2023–24 and noted the metric’s baseline year is 2023–24.

Items tracked: the metric examines representation in advanced coursework, gifted identification, office discipline referrals and suspensions. Staff noted three special cells (ELL in advanced coursework, students with disabilities and gifted and students with disabilities in advanced coursework) are tracked but not included in the 33-cell proportionality calculation used to compute the overall equity aggregate.

Why it matters: the metric operationalizes the district’s equity strategic imperative by calling attention to disproportionalities across enrollment groups and program rosters. Staff said the measure helps the district target interventions and resource allocations to ensure proportional access to advanced classes and to reduce disproportionate discipline.

Board response and next steps: trustees asked for year-over-year changes to be shown alongside the baseline and requested school-level detail (an asterisk or flag for schools in the Rise Up designation, and explicit percent-change columns). Staff said they would provide a more detailed table showing school-level changes and year-over-year deltas.

Ending: staff reminded trustees they receive a weekly suspension report in board memos and that the equity dashboard will be updated annually as the district adds each year’s column to the strategic-plan dashboard.","mediaType","Video","parentTitle","01-21-2025 Governing Board Retreat","oneSentenceSummary","District staff reviewed a proportionality-based equity metric used to track representation in advanced coursework, gifted programs and office referrals/suspensions; the board received the baseline and methodology and asked for year-over-year detail at the school level.","taxTitle","Kyrene Elementary District (4267), School Districts, Arizona","taxId",13625,"location","Arizona","headline","","shortSummary",{"_33":77,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":78,"_41":79,"_43":80,"_45":80,"_47":81,"_49":82,"_51":83,"_53":84,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":85,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":86,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},6378632,"Kyrene adopts Character Strong for middle schools; uses Panorama survey and teacher reflection to measure belonging",0,7725000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=2137199-9d7635d1ef916592851a3a828992ab06&start=7725&end=7725","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2137199-9d7635d1ef916592851a3a828992ab06/thumbnail_7725000.jpg","/articles/6378632/Arizona/Kyrene-adopts-Character-Strong-for-middle-schools-uses-Panorama-survey-and-teacher-reflection-to-measure-belonging","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6378632-25031cdc4b7af51b89c1fb7fc621ea27/orig.mp4?Expires=1770440294&Signature=eItpl2uFMDoD2nlFo52KJuCpfUzYDsLLmwAbJApJqfneLuz~o3MVE1-1kY~eU15Fa7YTqBGd-ez~kgcA50oq-KgdtuzwzW~Ip94bquRl9YLKQXs7VaFQTQRalnaL8RyOK3fzB3iObudAFFKSJWA3O31nWoZ-He2tMQ07-3~v1yyd~q7misHsmyXkSktyXw6zx0ziJ~uA42dajtpcFM-DznHelMsPDI0mODDgAHGEnunGs7jwq-tHblRH0VXGyCAG4IUOJc1T31Dp~lvnMy3JCBn12nK1rwriFOxDNXCg5NK~rLyAqmUbEHMR3SrLJyp-f5-k-VpsPZo091uOcQxpgA__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Kyrene Elementary District leaders told the governing board they have implemented a middle-school social-emotional learning curriculum and are using Panorama survey results and teacher self-reflections to measure sense of belonging.

Amy Gendel, director of grades 4–8 curriculum, said the district adopted the Character Strong curriculum for grades 6–8 and rolled it out this fall. The lessons run in advisory periods (about 30 minutes) and are differentiated by grade. “We adopted a program called Character Strong and it is for all 6th through 8th grade students,” she said.

Policy context and measurement: staff noted the district’s student social-emotional wellness policy, identified in the presentation as Policy 5-412, and said Panorama surveys are administered twice a year (fall and winter) though district reporting focuses on spring results to avoid seasonality. Staff explained Panorama treats items as favorable if students “agree” or “strongly agree” and aggregates those responses; district-level changes of 2–3 percentage points are typical.

Implementation supports: staff described professional development for teachers and administrators (initial July training, follow-ups in September and February), a teacher self-reflection Google form that tracks relational, proactive and reactive classroom practices, and an AROI (academic return on investment) process that includes learning walks to observe classroom implementation.

Use and next steps: administrators and PBIS tier-1 teams can access aggregated teacher self-reflection dashboards to identify school-level strengths and areas for support. District leaders also said they are preparing a parallel social-emotional wellness policy for employees.

Board reaction: trustees requested access to curriculum materials and the district said hour-long walk-throughs and curriculum demonstrations were scheduled for board members who requested them.

Ending: staff said spring Panorama results will be available after the winter administration and that school-level Panorama summaries and teacher-reflection dashboards are available for board review.","The district described implementation of Character Strong in grades 6–8, staff training and teacher self-reflection tools tied to Panorama survey results. Administrators are conducting learning walks and the district has a student social-emotional wellness policy (5-412).",{"_33":88,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":89,"_41":90,"_43":91,"_45":92,"_47":93,"_49":94,"_51":95,"_53":96,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":97,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":98,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},6378636,"Kyrene explains academic-progress metric and district assessments used to forecast state results",1651,1163000,2814000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=2137199-9d7635d1ef916592851a3a828992ab06&start=1163&end=2814","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2137199-9d7635d1ef916592851a3a828992ab06/thumbnail_1163000.jpg","/articles/6378636/Arizona/Kyrene-explains-academic-progress-metric-and-district-assessments-used-to-forecast-state-results","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6378636-7bc03882f5f37a9fb1fa06839ab18283/orig.mp4?Expires=1770440294&Signature=GVjQuTwgVqcuID42n~Xb9K6SO5wBE9e3Fe3D58VYvxy8G-HYBDan~AD6B6SzNwcn89WAmXOhziPY2YGd4nY8yr8sLNO3UZqq8HqO5xG6JDV~8j446v2Y2WJRk4oWoevbsAq30cMVBY8-9g6hf2rkrtJ1y0tG6DEsJTIf7BcukuN8EyLRO5ESMcf0BicMYf0NYE5LRmJi--mPsLUqF3qiLSz~1zGkAKR13hGj7GL3HIEjR8J4j7Fy0w3N9Sx3N0KON8g33yDj6lzXaVzg2yOU0lsasR6H~~lt0m-n4mLXBZZwufDgwx-ucoIQK23NOfOra5Mv~ylu3z~US45gYttfHQ__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","District research and accountability staff explained the district’s academic-progress metric and the suite of assessments the district uses as leading indicators at a Dec. board data retreat.

Rebecca Bolnick, director of research, described the academic-progress composite that the district uses in teacher evaluation: a weighted combination of percent passing on state assessments, measured growth, and an on-track projection. “On-track is a projection: if a student continued on the same trajectory from the prior year to the current year, would they be on pace to pass the state assessment in three years?” she said.

Why it matters: the board was told that relying solely on percent-passing masks important work, particularly in schools serving higher shares of English learners, students with disabilities or economically disadvantaged students. The composite gives more credit to teachers whose students are making consistent growth or are on a trajectory to reach proficiency.

How the measure works (as presented):
- Passing: the percent of students meeting the state proficiency cut score in English language arts (ELA) and math.
- Growth: change in distance from the passing cut score from one year to the next. If the distance decreases, the student is counted as growing.
- On-track: a projection that extrapolates two years of data to judge whether current trajectory leads to proficiency in three years.
- Weighting: district staff described a weighting that places 50% of the composite on the on-track measure and allocates the remaining 50% between passing and growth, resulting in a single district academic-progress percentage.

Leading indicators: staff also reviewed district assessments used to estimate likely state outcomes. DIBELS (K–3), NWEA (several grade bands), and i-Ready (math K–5) are nationally normed and adaptive instruments the district uses as early signals of where students are likely to score on the state exam. Staff said the vendors’ linking studies and the district’s own analysis indicate these assessments predict state passing roughly eight or nine times out of ten when used at scale.

Use in practice: the on-track and growth calculations require at least two consecutive years of data and therefore begin to apply in the district’s calculations in later elementary grades; staff noted that on-track is recalculated annually so projections update when new data become available. District staff said they provide teachers with an award-winning explainer video and classroom-level dashboards so educators can use the metric diagnostically.

Trustee questions: board members asked how often projections change and whether the projection can mislead decisions about interventions. Staff answered that the projection is an estimate based on historical trajectory and that it is one of multiple data points teachers use; they emphasized teacher-level and classroom-level progress monitoring is used for day-to-day decisions.

Ending: district staff said the goal for the academic-progress composite is to reach 70% by 2027–28 and that the board will see state-assessment peer-comparisons when those results are released.","District staff reviewed how Kyrene calculates its academic progress measure for teacher evaluation (weighted on-track/growth/passing), described NWEA and i-Ready as nationally normed leading indicators and explained how the on-track projection is computed and rerun annually.",{"_33":100,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":101,"_41":102,"_43":103,"_45":104,"_47":105,"_49":106,"_51":107,"_53":108,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":109,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":110,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},6378641,"Kyrene board reviews early-literacy data; district doubles down on DIBELS, LETRS and smaller K–2 classes",901,170000,1071000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=2137199-9d7635d1ef916592851a3a828992ab06&start=170&end=1071","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2137199-9d7635d1ef916592851a3a828992ab06/thumbnail_170000.jpg","/articles/6378641/Arizona/Kyrene-board-reviews-early-literacy-data-district-doubles-down-on-DIBELS-LETRS-and-smaller-K2-classes","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6378641-593be4e4f3cd7a06400a5256f02aee76/orig.mp4?Expires=1770440294&Signature=nhmuCt3B1gOzsM8fi3QM6GQr73o28a7W4RKYyG9ipdd174p~0~xIfR9X1Ms2CeK4wex-reQRTyVztWTrK7f2ssP13TVnL5UnOivqIKSyJRmH0NuvcBek5lKxmkiThcTTDxdVIro51w1vue6RdYK2FhDi7o16euaB5j0bzdaSSyzpT6FEaIgZT-QOqgbC-JiptYQxYRB1eoRb0Dy9bdNK~Pdrls2IoFhCBQ0LcnjN5UkNBRnA87h3sLCiOV4K4CAtMpsjImsKYRSYh3la2OQcXyvCj5lwe2SIWOnCc109LAOBQhV9pGaBujfqy12RBpFiSb61J8owzD28RCKfneePlA__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","The Kyrene Elementary District presented midyear district-assessment data at a board data retreat, telling members the district is aiming to reach an 85% end-of-year benchmark on the DIBELS early-literacy screen for each incoming kindergarten cohort.

The target and how the district plans to reach it were front and center. Superintendent Teneas framed the board retreat as the second review in the district’s annual assessment cycle, and Dr. Christy McDougall, director of assessment and student outcomes, and Carrie Feherty, associate superintendent for Future Ready Schools, walked trustees through DIBELS performance and how the district uses multiple assessments to triangulate student progress.

Board members were given context for the goal: kindergarten baseline proficiency on DIBELS was 74% in 2022–23 and rose to 78% in 2023–24. “We’re starting this year with the kindergarten cohort and if we can maintain 85% each year as that cohort moves up, in 2027–28 that group would be K–3 and meet the 85% target,” Dr. McDougall said. The district said it expects to see additional movement in the current year as midyear and end-of-year data are collected.

Why it matters: district leaders said the 85% target balances classroom capacity and intervention resources. “The research…is about 15% of your population is going to need some level of intervention at some point,” Superintendent Teneas said; district staff added that the system is designed to support roughly that 15% with intervention staffing and MTSS monitoring so that the classroom and intervention resources are sustainable.

What the district is doing: staff described several operational changes and supports intended to drive early-literacy gains. Those include:
- Professional development: a phased LETRS (Language Essentials for Teachers of Reading and Spelling) rollout for K–3 teachers and administrators, including district trainers and coaching; preschool staff received AIM to Prevent phonemic-awareness training.
- Targeted interventions: a 45-minute daily block for differentiated instruction at elementary schools; progress monitoring and MTSS plans for students “well below benchmark”; fall and spring intersession (two-week blocks) for students below benchmark.
- Staffing and class-size strategy: the district said it decreased class-size targets for K–2 (district targets cited in the presentation: kindergarten average 19–21; first grade 21–23; second grade 23–25; third grade 25–27) and noted the investment to achieve those targets is substantial (presenters estimated the annual cost to maintain the commitments at more than $1,000,000). If a class temporarily exceeds the target, additional classroom assistance hours are provided and, in summer, new sections can be created when enrollment warrants, staff said.
- Monitoring and materials: district teams created a common monitoring system for MTSS plans and produced video tutorials and handouts so teachers and leaders can access assessment source data and pull reports more easily.

Voices from the retreat: Carrie Feherty said the district has built “data dives” into the calendar so that staff stop to analyze end-of-year and beginning-of-year data and then again at midyear. Dr. McDougall added that DIBELS is a nationally common K–3 early-literacy measure and that the district uses beginning-of-year, middle-of-year and end-of-year windows to track growth. “This assessment gives us an indication of how on grade level or behind a student may be,” she said.

What's next: staff said the board will receive state-assessment peer-comparison data when the state releases it, and the district will present end-of-year results in a future public meeting that folds into the strategic-plan performance dashboard.

Ending note: trustees had several procedural and clarifying questions about class-size averages, how the intervention exit process works and how DIBELS data link to other measures; staff said they would provide school-level reports and dashboards for further review.","At a Dec. data retreat the Kyrene Elementary District reviewed district-assessment results, highlighted growth in kindergarten DIBELS scores and outlined interventions — professional development (LETRS), targeted intervention blocks, intersession support and class-size targets — intended to reach an 85% end-of-year kindergarten benchmark.","actionData","errors"]

Article not found

Kyrene outlines equity metric for proportionality in advanced coursework, gifted identification and discipline

Kyrene adopts Character Strong for middle schools; uses Panorama survey and teacher reflection to measure belonging

Kyrene explains academic-progress metric and district assessments used to forecast state results

Kyrene board reviews early-literacy data; district doubles down on DIBELS, LETRS and smaller K–2 classes