Northlake Middle highlights reading, attendance and SEL gains; board adopts calendar and two policies

Northlake Middle School staff told the Berkeley School District 87 Board of Education on a school-improvement update that the school has increased reading and math benchmark attainment, expanded social-emotional learning (SEL) activities and sharply reduced chronic absenteeism.

The presentation, delivered by Northlake teachers and counselors and introduced by district staff, said reading-level proficiency rose from about 15% on Oct. 1 to 39% on the latest measure, and that 24 additional students are now at grade level in math on recent assessments. The school reported that 58% of students had already met or exceeded their annual target growth on MAP as of the day of the presentation; the building goal is 70% by spring testing. Presenters described classroom practices that supported the gains, including daily sustained independent reading (30 minutes at school plus time at home), schoolwide small-group conferencing cycles and a requirement that all math classes begin with 15 minutes of targeted small-group instruction.

Presenters outlined Northlake’s SEL work, including use of the Second Step curriculum, advisory circles three times weekly, Panorama and Alyssa’s Mission screening and a system of teacher and student referrals to counselors and the social worker. Staff said they held intentional community-building “circles” both as proactive SEL practice and as restorative responses after incidents; a district observer described a restorative circle that left participants “thankful, relieved and hopeful.” The school also described student leadership and community-service activities, after-school clubs (about 15 this year), recognition programs and partnerships with community organizations.

Northlake staff described a multi-pronged effort to reduce chronic absenteeism. The school formed a SEAL (student engagement and attendance liaison) team to meet regularly with families rather than rely on punitive letters. Staff reported reducing the number of students missing 14 or more days from about 100 (Feb. 1 of the prior year) to 46 as of the most recent report, a roughly 50% decrease. A seventh-grade student, Frank Steven Garcia, told the board he had reduced his absences from 19 last year to three this year after school staff and his family met with the school’s attendance team.

At the meeting the board also took several formal actions. The board approved routine minutes and claims, accepted multiple licensed and support-staff leaves and resignations, approved new educational support hires pending paperwork, and adopted the 2025–26 school calendar (start Aug. 19, 2025; end May 29, 2026, and a district total of 185 days including institute and emergency days). The board waived first readings and adopted two policies on the spot: Policy 2.1.25E3 (a resolution to regulate expense reimbursements) and Policy 4.80 AP3 (administrative procedures on inventory management for federal and state awards). Those policy changes were presented as required by legislation and as necessary because the district is in the middle of receiving additional federal funds.

In other business, board members discussed PACE Center’s proposal to replace aging UniVent HVAC units at PACE schools with a geothermal system. District representatives said preliminary financial analyses show comparable upfront costs to traditional HVAC, with expected utility savings beginning after about seven to eight years and potential eligibility for rebates and incentives. Board members signaled support for PACE’s recommendation, noting that geothermal can free classroom space and improve temperature control.

Why it matters: Northlake’s report covers academic and social-emotional strategies that the district is using to raise literacy and math outcomes and to address chronic absenteeism — a district priority. The board actions adopted the calendar and policy updates needed for operations and federal compliance, and the geothermal discussion affects facilities planning and long-term energy costs across districts served by PACE.

Quotes and attribution

"Last year I improved my attendance from 19 absences to three this year," seventh-grade student Frank Steven Garcia told the board, crediting school staff and his family for the change.

Votes at a glance

- Approval of the minutes (regular meeting 01/27/2025, closed session 12/16/2024, Facilities Committee 01/27/2025): motion carried (mover: Miss Walker; seconder: Miss Mason; roll call: ayes recorded). - Approval of accounts and claims payable as presented: motion carried (mover recorded in minutes; roll call: ayes recorded). - Licensed personnel leaves of absence (multiple named staff): approved (motion and roll call recorded). - Acceptance of licensed personnel resignations (named staff): approved (motion and roll call recorded). - Educational support staff leaves and new educational support staff employments (names listed in agenda): approved (motion and roll call recorded). - Adoption of 2025–26 school calendar (begin Aug. 19; end May 29, 2026; 175 instructional days plus 10 other days for total 185): adopted (mover: Miss Walker; seconder: Mr. Jackson; roll call: ayes recorded). - Policy 2.1.25E3 (resolution to regulate expense reimbursements): adopted (first reading waived; motion carried). - Policy 4.80 AP3 (inventory management for federal and state awards): adopted (first reading waived; motion carried).

Details omitted or not specified in the record: vote tallies by individual board member for every motion are reported in the official minutes but the transcript records the roll-call affirmations as “aye” without a complete named tally for every action; where the transcript did not tie a specific line to a named mover or seconder, the agenda text or the meeting clerk’s announcement was summarized as recorded.

Context and next steps

District staff said preliminary MAP and IAR data and Panorama results will continue to guide building goals; the board asked staff to keep it updated on Spring MAP/IAR results and on the PACE geothermal financials and incentives. Several board members requested continued reporting on attendance interventions, SEL circle work and the impact of classroom-structure changes on reading outcomes.