Great Valley SD leaders outline progress, next steps on three-year equity plan

Superintendent Dr. Wexler told the Great Valley School District Board Tuesday that the district is delivering the first of three scheduled updates on its three-year equity plan, highlighting progress in six action areas and plans for further work on discipline, professional learning and family engagement.

Wexler said the six high-leverage action areas are: a shared equity vision; family and community engagement; instructional practices and systems of support; professional learning and self-reflection; classroom culture and school climate; and hiring and retention. "We work in that context," Wexler said, adding the presentation was intended as a high-level update rather than a full re‑launch of the plan.

The presentation described recent steps including establishment of building-based equity teams, principal leadership coaching, faculty professional learning on interrupting hate speech and harassment, and targeted work on discipline alternatives to exclusion. "We wanted to do that last year, but it's a really heavy lift, so I've committed to really focusing on that this year," Wexler said, noting a full-day training for principals and district staff on Sept. 24 that covered restorative practices and alternatives to suspension.

District staff also reviewed the student climate survey results collected in April using the Pennsylvania Department of Education (PDE) tool. Administrators said scores are reported on a 0-to-4 scale; a 3.5 or above is considered favorable. Wexler and other presenters said most schools fell into a neutral band rather than favorable or unfavorable for the metrics reviewed, with social-emotional learning showing comparatively lower marks. The district plans to re-administer the survey in December to generate a midyear data point and track trends within the same school year.

Family and community engagement efforts described in the presentation included multilingual learner family nights and use of the ParentSquare platform for translation and interpreter services. Instructional supports highlighted included consistent math frameworks, increased small-group instruction and development of individual learning profiles for K–6 students with plans to expand into grades 7–12.

Wexler also described a planned audit this year of the district—s CST and MTSS supports (the interventions a school uses before referring a student to special education) and said the findings will inform staffing and budget decisions.

Human-resources changes noted included hiring an HR supervisor (referred to in the presentation as Miss George/Vertu) and steps to streamline hiring and onboarding processes. Board members asked for follow-up presentations that bring school-level examples and progress reports on specific metrics, including discipline data and student supports.

The board and presenters emphasized the intent to combine quantitative measures (climate surveys, discipline dashboards, staffing data) with qualitative follow-up such as focus groups and school-based feedback to triangulate findings and guide next steps. "We want to make sure we administer the survey and talk about the results in the same school year," Wexler said.