School District No. Re-3 Fort Morgan administrators reported assessment results and raised staffing and program-planning concerns as the district’s Spanish-English dual-language immersion (DLI) program progresses into middle school.

Sheridan Early Childhood Center Principal Tara Boyer told the board the district shifted DLI entry to kindergarten two years ago and that the current cohort is “not quite 50%, but almost 50%,” meaning the classes are approaching the program’s intended 50/50 split of native English and Spanish speakers. “This is our second year,” Boyer said. “We’re proud to have, not quite 50%, but almost 50%.”

An unnamed staff member who presented assessment data said first-grade students scored “novice high in listening and novice mid in speaking,” consistent with American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages expectations for students who started in kindergarten. The presenter also described technical difficulties in administering AVID/Avant speaking tasks that produced zero scores for some students and said averages are therefore slightly depressed from the true level.

Middle school principal Chad, who summarized district NWEA (Northwest Evaluation Association) achievement results for DLI cohorts, said the district compares DLI students’ results to peers and that the DLI students are “keeping pace or outpacing our traditional track students.” Chad said NWEA is administered three times per year and noted small cohort sizes can cause greater year-to-year variance. “When you look across the nation … 50 percentile is average. Anything above it, you’re doing better,” he said.

A district teacher reading prepared remarks described program strengths and ongoing needs, saying the DLI program is “a true asset to our community” while urging stronger, consistent supports for teachers and a “solid, well developed plan” to guide students as cohorts move through grade levels. The speaker emphasized special education, language services and reading intervention must be “met equally equitably for the program to truly succeed,” and requested that teacher assistants remain in classrooms rather than being routinely pulled to cover other duties.

Board members did not take formal action on the presentation but received the report. Presenters and staff repeatedly framed the remarks as progress reporting and needs identification rather than as a request for an immediate policy vote.

District documents and presenters identified testing sources (AVID/Avant and NWEA) and cited the cohort-based expectation that full comparative outcomes are most meaningful once students reach eighth grade. The presenters recommended continued district support, reliable in-class assistant coverage, and development of a districtwide plan to guide DLI students from elementary into secondary settings.