Madison Board approves revised PreK–5 related-arts model after parent feedback

At a special meeting of the Madison Board of Education, Superintendent Donnie Cook presented a revised PreK–5 related-arts model and said the board approved the superintendent and administration's proposed budget at a 2.47 percent increase.

The revised model restores and modifies related-arts offerings for elementary students after parent and teacher feedback. Donnie Cook said the district added back theater for all fifth graders (18 lessons per year), increased Spanish in fourth and fifth grades to two times per week, expanded STEM/computer instruction to one time per week for K–3 and for upper elementary, and kept scheduled library time K–12. "We did increase Spanish, doubling the Spanish is what we looked at," Cook said. He also told the board the administration added staffing to support the model, including one world language teacher and additional music and theater positions, which the board approved as part of the budget process.

Why this matters: the changes affect daily schedules, staffing and the content students receive in the new school configurations. Cook said some reductions remain compared with prior years (for example, theater moves from 30 lessons to 18 lessons per year in grade 5), and that the district will seek other ways to augment reduced elements (after-school options and ensembles). He emphasized that individualized special-education services "supersede…