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Verona board accepts OE‑10 monitoring report; district cites declines in disproportionality and expands restorative practices
Summary
The board accepted the district monitoring report on learning environment and student behavior (OE‑10), hearing data on reduced disproportionality in referrals and suspensions and plans to expand social‑emotional instruction, restorative practices, and consistent data rules across schools.
The Verona Area School District Board of Education accepted the district’s OE‑10 monitoring report Aug. 25, with board members praising data progress and asking for clearer indicators and decision rules moving forward.
Presenters told the board the district had made measurable reductions in disciplinary disproportionality between the 2023–24 and 2024–25 school years. Staff reported a roughly 20 percent decrease in the share of behavior referrals for Black or African American students and a nearly 10 percent reduction in suspensions for that group; the district also reported nearly a 15 percent reduction in behavior referrals for students eligible for free or reduced‑price lunch and a 10 percent reduction for students with individualized education programs (IEPs).
Dr. Hawkins, discussing leadership moves behind the data, said the district used multiple strategies including a social‑emotional screener, expanded restorative‑practices training and a progressive response model that has been updated based on staff, student and family input. “When students return [from suspension], we’re not returning them to the same spot,” Dr. Hawkins said; staff described follow‑up plans and behavior‑support coaching cycles designed to help students succeed on return.
Presenters and board members emphasized that improved data do not reflect a lowering of standards. A board member asked whether the drop in referrals could be a data artifact; staff responded that the district is improving data consistency and that the changes reflect multiple coordinated interventions rather than simply reducing referrals.
The district also said it had revised certain behavioral categories to reduce ambiguity — for example, removing the term “disrespect” and replacing it with a more concrete category, “refusal to follow staff directives,” defined as “blatant disregard for staff instructions” that continues after staff intervention. The administrators said the change will yield more actionable data.
Board members discussed whether the OE‑10 indicators should be revised to align with new surveys and response scales; presenters said some climate‑survey changes created noncomparable baselines and suggested the board review indicators that no longer match available questions. The board voted to accept the OE‑10 report and later voted the report compliant as written.
The board’s acceptance of the report included direction to continue refining data rules, expand restorative and de‑escalation training and report back on how indicator wording and survey changes affect year‑to‑year comparisons.
Speakers quoted in this story are drawn from the board meeting transcript of the Aug. 25 monitoring presentation and board discussion.
