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District hears report on Salt Lake Center for Science Education partnership; staff to convene joint review committee
Summary
Staff presented findings from listening sessions about the Slicksy partnership between a charter and a district middle/high campus, identified governance, trust and implementation issues, and recommended a joint committee to review the model and return with recommendations.
The board heard a focused report on the Salt Lake Center for Science Education (referred to in discussion as “Slicksy”) partnership between a charter campus and a district campus. Staff summarized listening sessions and recommended forming a joint stakeholder committee to review model governance, equity and implementation.
Dr. Taylor, staff member, summarized roughly three months of outreach that included one-on-one meetings, focus groups and surveys. Staff identified six recurring themes: the need for clarity and consistency around roles and expectations; a shared commitment to student success and equity; concern about communication breakdowns; inconsistent implementation of program elements; effects of leadership turnover; and tensions over progressive versus traditional instructional philosophies.
Board members and members of the public raised concerns about process and evidence. Board member Bryce Williams said the model is documented in existing materials and urged centering student outcomes in any review. Board member Ashley Anderson said she was concerned the district’s survey and focus-group work had not produced a sufficiently rigorous sample or coded qualitative analysis. “I don’t really feel like I have great data presented to make a decision,” Anderson said, noting one survey sample reported in the meeting had 14 responses.
Staff and board members agreed on next steps: convene a joint committee with representatives from both campuses and key stakeholders, use the meetings and available material as input, and return to the board with a clear set of recommendations — possibly including continued partnership with clearer governance, revised joint plans, or, if recommended by the committee, a different structural arrangement. No final decision was made at the meeting; staff said the committee would be formed and would work early in the next school year.
