Superintendent presents summative goal report; district highlights scholarship, AP, program and operations gains
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Summary
Superintendent Follin presented a 19‑page summative evaluation and reported progress on district strategic goals: scholarship totals, AP exam participation, kindergarten meet-and-greet, PowerSchool implementation, and metrics for student achievement and operations.
Canton — Superintendent Follin presented a summative evaluation May 15 that summarized district progress on student achievement, professional learning, operations, and equity goals. The report ties the district’s strategic plan to ongoing initiatives including MSBA work, PowerSchool implementation, special-education planning and instructional priorities.
Highlights offered by the superintendent and staff included:
- CHS scholarship night: Follin said 73 organizations donated scholarships for roughly 75 students, with total awards reported at $221,050 and four‑year elements pushing the sum over $250,000.
- AP exams: Over 330 students registered for Advanced Placement tests this year, with about 760 exams administered; the district completed its first fully digital AP exam administration, the superintendent reported.
- Kindergarten meet-and-greet: The district piloted a half-day meet-and-greet to welcome incoming kindergarten families and increase equity of access to schools and administrators.
- PowerSchool (SIS) implementation: District staff and principals described the first year of the new student information system as successful, noting improved multilingual communications and a districtwide rollout of digital report cards. District staff said some features will be added over time as needs are identified.
- Special-education enrollment and out-of-district placements: Follin and staff noted that the district’s special-education population has increased and that the school system monitors out-of-district placements closely; staff said transportation and circuit-breaker reimbursement volatility have been a cost driver and that advocacy for stable state reimbursement is ongoing.
- Student achievement goals: The district reported projected gains based on benchmark screeners and noted targeted goals for subgroups identified by the Student Opportunity Act, while principals presented school‑level progress earlier in the meeting.
Follin described the summative report as a comprehensive resource and invited committee members to submit questions prior to the formal evaluation action scheduled in June. The superintendent credited district staff, principals and the school committee for joint work on budget, operations and instructional priorities.
