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School Committee adopts MASC-recommended progress-report policy; committee discusses translating and live gradebooks
Summary
The School Committee voted to remove outdated policies IJM and IK and adopt MASC-recommended IKAB on May 6. Committee members discussed how progress reporting, Schoology and translation tools are used across school levels.
The Nantucket School Committee voted on May 6 to remove policy IJM (special interest materials selection and adoption) and policy IK (academic achievement and student progress) and to adopt IKAB, the Massachusetts Association of School Committees (MASC)-recommended policy on student progress reports to parents and guardians.
"The policy subcommittee ... found a few policies that we are recommending that the committee remove," a committee member said during the policy discussion. The committee moved, seconded and approved removal of IJM and IK and the adoption of IKAB; the chair called the votes and members responded "Aye."
Committee discussion before the votes focused on how the new policy aligns with current practice, how progress information is communicated to families across grade levels, and supports for non‑English speaking families. Michael Horton, Harris Pierce Middle School principal, described the district’s use of trimester report cards and live gradebooks in Schoology: "we have Schoology, which is live to the second," he said, adding that live gradebooks and guidance-counselor follow-ups are part of the district’s approach to notifying families when students are at risk.
Donna Johnson, assistant principal at NIS, said elementary and intermediate classrooms tend to rely on narrative report cards, regular teacher‑parent contact and translated messages via Remind, and that intervention supports include documentation and progress reports sent home when students receive interventions.
The committee discussed that IKAB does not prescribe a fixed frequency for progress-report mailings but requires teachers to notify parents when a student’s performance warrants attention. One committee member asked whether a minimum frequency should be required; staff responded that the district issues report cards (quarterly or trimester, by level) and that the district provides translated communications and has on‑demand translators available for parent meetings.
The committee did not create new reporting mandates at the meeting; it adopted the MASC-recommended IKAB policy and asked staff to continue work on related policies under review, including cell‑phone and mobile‑crisis procedures, at upcoming subcommittee meetings.
