District pilots middle-school accountability system; 34% of students initially identified for extra supports

District staff presented a new middle-school accountability program to the Board of Education on Oct. 15, saying the system is designed to "move from passive to active" intervention for students who show early warning signs of falling behind.

The system's entry criteria require a student to meet two of three measures: a failing grade in math or English/language arts; growth below the 35th student-growth percentile (SGP); or STAR proficiency in ELA or math categorized as "below approaching." District staff explained school sites ran a September data pull to qualify students for the program and provided a first-quarter exit snapshot.

Key data from the first quarter
At the Sept. 10 data pool, district staff said 1,368 of 4,019 middle-school students (34%) met the two-of-three criteria and were activated into the accountability system. Staff reported that 133 students (12.84% of those who started in the system) exited at the end of first quarter after grades improved sufficiently to remove the failing-grade criterion for some students.

Support structure and implementation
District staff described a tiered set of supports. Students in the program receive weekly check-ins focused on work habits, organization, data and goal-setting. As students demonstrate progress, the frequency of check-ins reduces (weekly to every-other-week) before eventual exit. Additional supports can include mentoring, customized schedules, tutoring, targeted intervention classes ("JAG" or "Discovery" periods), and encouragement to join extracurriculars to increase belonging.

School-level pilots and teacher reaction
Principals and counselors who spoke at the session said teachers and staff applauded the system at roll-out. Case studies from two middle schools described teachers noting improved student accountability and that weekly adult check-ins prompted students to take STAR and other assessments more seriously. Jenkins and North middle schools described pilot interventions that include pre-testing modules (Eureka) to identify skill gaps and online adaptive practice tied to STAR results.

Board questions and next steps
Board members asked how schools staff the weekly check-ins (split among counselors and administrators, in many cases), whether grade-book weighting and inconsistent grading practices contributed to identification, and how schools are funded for additional intervention time. District leaders said grade-book guidelines and a future "middle school academy" design lab will examine grading consistency, operational models and resource implications. The district will return to the board with midyear data and a more developed recommendation about academy options and any resource requests.

Ending
District staff emphasized the program is early in implementation and that the first-quarter exit numbers likely will grow after the midyear STAR window. Staff said the goal is to reduce the number of students requiring intensive intervention over time and to share promising school-level practices across middle schools.