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Desert Sands previews California School Dashboard local indicators ahead of LCAP adoption
Summary
District assessment coordinator Michael O'Neil presented the 2025 Local Indicators to the board, outlining strengths (credentialing, facilities, access to materials), areas for growth (secondary student engagement) and the plan to include the indicators in the LCAP for June adoption.
At the May 20, 2025 Desert Sands Unified board meeting, Dr. Michael O'Neil, coordinator of assessment and accountability, presented the district's 2025 California School Dashboard Local Indicators and explained how they will feed into the district's Local Control and Accountability Plan (LCAP) ahead of the June adoption.
O'Neil said the local indicators complement state data by measuring basic services, implementation of state standards, parent engagement, school climate and access to a broad course of study. On teacher assignment and credentialing he reported that, for the most recently published year, the district was "at 88.8% clear," meaning that percentage of teachers were fully authorized for their exact assignments and that rate was above county and state averages.
On parent engagement, O'Neil described the district's use of ThoughtExchange to gather feedback from families, staff and students and said the district saw an increase in partner satisfaction in areas such as implementation of policies and supports for family participation. For school climate, the district uses Panorama surveys across grades 3'12; O'Neil said elementary responses were broadly favorable while secondary student engagement was the lowest-scoring theme but trending upward year over year.
On access to a broad course of study, the presentation noted district offerings including AVID, dual language immersion, 25 CTE programs, International Baccalaureate at several sites, Advanced Placement courses, and opportunities to earn industry certification and college credit.
O'Neil said the local indicators are compiled using multiple data sources (administrator walkthroughs, PLCs, diagnostics such as i-Ready and DIBELS, CASP and ELPAC results) and will be included as an informational item when the LCAP is brought forward for adoption in June; the dashboard release for public viewing typically occurs in mid-November with a state deadline around that time.
Board members asked for response rates and additional breakdowns; O'Neil said he would provide detailed counts and supporting data in a follow-up letter. The presentation was delivered as an informational update; no action was requested at the meeting.
