Davenport Community School District leaders told the school board they saw modest gains on some state tests but widespread evidence that the district is still below where it wants to be, and that recent curriculum changes have produced a temporary “implementation dip.” Diane (staff member) told the board the district reduced chronic absenteeism from 38% in 2023–24 to 27.6% in 2024–25 and said buildings would continue targeted monitoring and supports. "We decreased chronic absenteeism from 38 percent in 'twenty three-'twenty four school year to 27.6 percent in the 'twenty four, 'twenty five school year," Diane said.

The presentation combined multiple literacy and math measures — FAST CBM (K–5 literacy screener), HMH and Amplify curriculum-aligned screeners, MAP growth measures, and ISASP summative results for grades 3–11 — and proposed a year-by-year cadence of reporting to the board. Bonnie (program director) and colleagues framed the literacy numbers as consistent with a known phenomenon when districts adopt rigorous new core materials: an initial decline in measurable proficiency followed by gains as instruction and coaching deepen. "An implementation dip is not a failure. It's a sign that deep change is underway," Bonnie said.

Why it matters: district leaders said the core instructional shift to new materials (Amplify CKLA in elementary ELA; HMH Into Literature at secondary; new math resources and Algebra I curriculum for accelerated students), combined with sustained coaching and MTSS (multi-tiered systems of support), is intended to raise outcomes but requires two-to-three years of high-fidelity implementation. The board asked for a clearer schedule for when building-level data will be released to principals and when that same data will be available to the board in Tableau. Diane said Tableau feeds were scheduled the second week of August and that principals would receive building dashboards first.

What the data showed: the district’s spring FAST universal screener for K–5 was 54% at benchmark (state average reported as 66% last year); the district’s three-year SMART goal for third grade is 80% at benchmark by June 2025. ISASP results showed increases in several grades (for example, grade 3 ELA proficiency rose from 47% to 52%); math and science gains were uneven across grades. For K–8 math growth measures, kindergarten and first grade showed larger end-of-year proficiency increases than some upper grades; eighth-grade results exclude students enrolled in Algebra I because those students took a different growth assessment.

Board discussion focused on pace and expectations. Director Barnes asked when measurable impact from the curriculum adoption would appear; Bonnie and other staff cited research and district PLC (professional learning community) work that points to a 2–3 year window — and some research suggesting 3–5 years — to fully realize changes. Board members pressed for clarity on building-level variation, fidelity of implementation, turnover, and teacher capacity. Staff cited several factors associated with stronger building results: continuity of leadership and staff, intensive coaching visits, and regular use of curriculum-aligned progress monitoring.

Next steps: the district intends to continue LETRS professional development for staff, expand coaching grounded in HMH/Amplify supports, sustain weekly leadership learning for principals, extend MTSS work, improve attendance interventions, and maintain a regular cadence of smaller, focused data reports to the board. Staff will report back with tactical timelines and the first Tableau building dashboards when available.

The board did not take formal action on curriculum adoption or budget changes at this meeting; the presentation was for discussion and planning.