The Pasco School Board unanimously approved annual objectives for Superintendent Michelle Whitney that will frame the 2025–26 evaluation cycle, emphasizing reading, algebra completion and ninth‑grade on‑track‑for‑graduation measures. Whitney told the board the objectives incorporate board feedback and a clarification from a consultant to define “significant improvement” as "improvement outside the standard error."

Why it matters: The objectives set measurable targets that will guide district work, staff professional development, curriculum implementation and monitoring reports. Trustees and staff said the targets are intended to drive higher‑quality core instruction and consistent, districtwide multi‑tiered systems of support (MTSS) to accelerate learning for students who are behind.

What the objectives say and how they will be measured: Whitney described three core outcome areas: reading (increase percent of students reading on grade level), algebra completion (pass Algebra I by end of ninth grade) and ninth‑grade on‑track for graduation. The superintendent said the district will emphasize high‑quality curriculum implementation, targeted intervention and partnerships such as the University of Washington SMART Center’s Last Mile Project. Measures mentioned include K–5 Early-Access/Interim assessments, STAR growth and local "OnTrack for Graduation" correlation data; Whitney said the district will look for student growth percentiles of 64 or higher — a proxy for more than a year’s growth for students needing acceleration.

Board discussion and clarifications: Trustees asked about the practical meaning of “outside the standard error.” Whitney said the size of the standard error varies by assessment tool and promised to provide assessment‑specific standard error figures before progress reports are presented. One trustee offered a 3 percent growth example from another district as a practical benchmark, and board members discussed whether targets should be set for three‑ to five‑year horizons as part of a strategic improvement plan refresh.

Vote and next steps: A motion to approve the annual objectives as required by District Policy 16‑30 passed by roll call vote. The board asked staff to return with data reports, assessment‑specific standard error clarifications, and a timeline for the district strategic improvement plan refresh. Whitney said a study session to begin the refresh could be scheduled at the next regular study session.

Sources: Presentation and comments by Superintendent Michelle Whitney; board discussion.