Cabell County Schools officials told the board on a regularly scheduled meeting that district-level proficiency rose in the 2024–25 school year and that schools are continuing targeted interventions and diagnostic testing to sustain gains.

The progress update, presented by Miss Kelly, said the county’s overall math score increased by 2.07 percentage points compared with the previous year and that county reading proficiency measured 53.1 percent this year compared with a state figure cited as 48 percent. "We have progressively moved, in the right directions," Kelly told the board.

District and school leaders said those results reflect several strategies implemented after COVID-era declines: placement of interventionists at elementary schools (including second- and third-grade interventionists and supports placed in first grade), structured MTSS intervention blocks, professional learning communities that drill into domain-level and individual student data, alignment with i-Ready diagnostic results and use of SAT/PSAT data at the high-school level to target instruction. "Programs don't help kids. Teachers help kids," Kelly said, emphasizing the district’s focus on teacher-led interventions.

Board members and administrators discussed how to interpret growth at the cohort level. One board member suggested comparing a fifth grader’s current score with that same group’s previous-year fourth-grade score to measure growth; Preston (board member) noted some grade-to-grade drops that the district can investigate by drilling to classroom-level data and staffing histories. School staff said they can examine whether a classroom had a new or uncertified teacher or an extended leave that might explain cohort dips.

The district also highlighted high-school SAT participation and score movement. Kelly said the SAT is administered to 11th graders and that Huntington High School has exceeded pre-COVID SAT levels while Cabell Midland returned to its COVID-era level; Capital Midland recorded a 14‑point reading increase year to year. Administrators credited improved attendance for testing and school-level SAT supports such as PSAT data and Khan Academy alignment.

Superintendent Hardesty and academic staff described walk-through data and a new, in-house walk-through form linked to state standards that leaders can review. The district said it will provide an update on diagnostics and benchmark results after Benchmark 2, as part of its planned reporting to the board.

Board members commended classroom teachers and school leaders for the gains and the district’s approach to sustaining improvement.

The board received the report as information; no formal action was taken.