Tyee Park principal tells board school is driving strong growth despite low proficiency rates

At the Clover Park School District Board of Directors meeting on April 14, 2025, Tai'i Park Elementary Principal Tyler Beaker presented the school's academic, attendance and social-emotional data and told the board staff are using tiered instruction and frequent interim assessments to accelerate student growth.

Beaker said Tai'i Park serves a diverse population, with 44.5% of students identifying as Hispanic (compared with the state average of 26.1%), 30.4% multilingual learners and 82.5% qualifying as low income. He said five staff members speak Spanish fluently and the school added an early childhood special education program that serves 22 preschoolers. "In partnership with our community, families, and students, we provide a positive environment that nurtures and supports academic excellence and social growth," Beaker said.

Beaker acknowledged that statewide Smarter Balanced Assessment (SBA) proficiency rates at Tai'i Park lag the state: third-grade proficiency in 2024 was 28.5 percentage points below the state in English language arts and 24.2 points below in math; fourth-grade ELA was 27.7 points below and math 32.7 points below the state average. He said fifth-grade…