Evergreen presents YouthTruth and interim assessment results showing gains for several student groups

District leaders presented survey and interim assessment data at the Evergreen Public Schools board meeting May 27, reporting measurable gains in students' sense of belonging for several historically underserved groups and high participation in a March math interim assessment.

Dr. Jamila Singleton, director of student equity and family engagement, presented results from the YouthTruth student perception survey. She said high‑school belonging held steady at 42% overall and that the district saw "statistically significant growth" for Black, Latinx and Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander (NHPI) students in certain grades. "We're making some progress here, and we definitely have seen, statistically significant growth," Dr. Singleton said. She highlighted growth for LGBTQ students on questions about adults valuing diverse backgrounds.

Research and assessment coordinator Nathan Lee reported on a district‑wide Smarter Balanced‑aligned math interim administered in March. "We had over 99% of our testing grades work on the interims this year," Lee said. The district said 78 percent of students in grade 3 and above completed an interim this year; the interims focused on skills such as fractions and number sense and were intended to give students practice with the test platform and item types ahead of the statewide summative exam.

District staff said they will use the interim results for in‑year instructional adjustments rather than waiting for end‑of‑year summative scores: the district plans two ELA and two math interims next year and a combination of standardized and non‑standardized classroom checks to support teacher decision‑making.

Student Advisory Council update

Student board representatives reported the Student Advisory Council met eight times with 10–15 students attending regularly and discussed belonging, cell‑phone policy feedback, safety, multilingual learner services, and participation in the superintendent search process. Student rep Neveah Peebe (student board representative) and Jonathan Ramirez were recognized for their participation.

Why it matters

District staff said perception and progress‑monitoring data together give a fuller picture: YouthTruth gauges climate and belonging, while interim assessments help track discrete academic skills and allow educators to respond during the year. Presenters tied the survey gains to district efforts on student voice, targeted school improvement work and multilingual supports.

Speakers

- Dr. Jamila Singleton — Director of Student Equity and Family Engagement (presenter) - Nathan Lee — Research and Assessment Coordinator (presenter) - Student representatives Neveah Peebe and Jonathan Ramirez (Student Advisory Council report)

Authorities

[{"type":"other","name":"YouthTruth student perception survey","referenced_by":["Teaching, learning and equity update"]},{"type":"other","name":"Smarter Balanced interim assessments","referenced_by":["Teaching, learning and equity update"]}]

Actions

[]

Discussion_decision

- Discussion: YouthTruth showed notable subgroup gains in belonging and culture; interim math assessments provided near‑universal exposure to test format and content practice. - Directions: District will continue to use interim assessments for in‑year instruction and will administer two ELA and two math interims next year; staff to report summative results after state release. - Decisions: No board action required; informational item.

Clarifying_details

- Student Advisory Council met eight times in 2024–25 with consistent attendance of 10 to 15 students (source: Student Advisory report). - The March math interim participation: district presenters said "over 99% of our testing grades" engaged with interims and that 78 percent of students in grade 3 and above completed an interim (source: Nathan Lee). - YouthTruth: high school belonging held at 42% overall; the district reported statistically significant gains for Black, Latinx and NHPI subgroups in select measures (source: Dr. Jamila Singleton).

Proper_names

[{"name":"YouthTruth","type":"other"},{"name":"Smarter Balanced","type":"other"},{"name":"Student Advisory Council","type":"other"}]

Community_relevance

- Geographies: districtwide - Funding_sources: not specified - Impact_groups: students (especially Black, Latinx, NHPI and LGBTQ subgroups), teachers, school leaders

Meeting_context

- Engagement_level: informational presentation with board questions; moderate public interest. - Implementation_risk: low — informational data to guide instruction. - History: ongoing equity and data work; prior months included attendance and equity interventions.

Searchable_tags

["YouthTruth","interim-assessments","equity","student-survey","Smarter-Balanced"]

provenance

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