Counselors report on parent engagement and advanced‑course access; Green Canyon increases minority AP/CE participation

Counselors from Spring Creek Middle School and Green Canyon High School briefed the Cache County School District Board on May 15 about annual comprehensive counseling reviews and local data projects aimed at improving parental engagement and access to rigorous coursework.

Spring Creek presentation: A counselor from Spring Creek described a four‑year data project to raise parent/guardian attendance at PCCR (Plan for College and Career Readiness) meetings. Tactics included emails and text reminders, Google Calendar appointment slots, a Spanish‑speaking parent night, including IEP/transition collaboration with special education, pre‑meeting questionnaires, classroom lessons prior to meetings and remote meeting options. The presenters said parental participation has settled in the 40–50% range across the multi‑year project; the school had set a local target of a 10 percentage‑point increase over the project span and expects to pursue other improvement strategies next year.

Green Canyon presentation: Green Canyon counselors presented multi‑year disaggregated data on AP and concurrent‑enrollment (CE) participation by ethnic‑minority students. Baseline figures from 2022–23 showed minority students accounted for about 10.8% of concurrent enrollment and roughly 13–14% of AP participation. Current registration and intervention efforts have raised minority representation to approximately 12% of concurrent enrollments and 14.5% of AP enrollments; presenters reported a 19.4% relative increase in concurrent enrollment participation and an 11.2% relative increase in AP participation by minority students since 2022–23. Interventions included a freshmen Wolfpack Academy (relationship‑building and four‑year planning), fee waivers for AP/CE (24 fees covered this year), a dedicated PCCR night with translation services and targeted outreach to juniors and seniors who had not yet self‑selected advanced courses.

Why it matters: Counselors tied rigorous course access to possible improvements in standardized metrics (ASPIRE/ACT). Board members praised the efforts and asked about next steps; presenters said they are deciding whether to continue the current AP/CE outreach or reframe future projects to include Career and Technical Education (CTE) options and other schoolwide interventions.

No formal board action was taken; the presentations were part of the district’s annual comprehensive counseling review and will inform school improvement planning and resource allocation.