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Burnsville Public Schools presents student, family and staff survey results showing mixed gains
Summary
District 191 leaders presented results from annual student, family and staff surveys on June 26, reporting increases in some measures of school climate and areas requiring further outreach and methodological clarification.
Burnsville Public School District officials on June 26 presented findings from their annual student, family and staff surveys, reporting gains on student sense of safety and relationships with adults but mixed results for family awareness of board decisions.
The presentation, led by Aaron Tinklenberg, director of communications, and Amy Petrowski, director of student support services, summarized the administration’s approach and how the data are used. Tinklenberg said the student survey ran March 10 through April 11, 2025, and that participation expanded from prior years as the district sought broader representation across grade levels.
Tinklenberg and Petrowski said the student results show “promising upward trends” in how students perceive their learning experiences and relationships with staff; Doctor Hill and other board members noted the improvement in responses to “I feel safe at school” and trusting relationships with adults. The family survey drew 638 responses; about 60 percent of respondents self-identified as white, down from 66 percent in early 2024, and the district reported increased Hispanic representation among respondents.
Petrowski cautioned that changes in methodology affect comparability for some measures. The board saw a drop in the percentage of families saying they were informed about board decisions; presenters said that question had been moved from a phone-based survey in prior years into the email survey this year, and they recommended caution when comparing those figures with older results.
District staff said survey data are used at building and leadership-team levels to inform school improvement planning. Petrowski said most results have been reviewed by the superintendent’s leadership team, building-level reports were shared with principals and building leadership teams, and the district dashboard would be updated the following morning.
Board members praised the use of data to inform school-level changes and asked for continued focus on communicating pathways and district decisions to families. Petrowski and Tinklenberg said additional equity-focused and culture questions were added this year and that more detailed reports are available online.
