District staff-investment team recommends standardized onboarding after exit survey shows uneven practices

A Robbinsdale Area Schools team reporting on strategic theme D — staff investment and impact — recommended the district centralize and standardize onboarding and related supports to improve staff retention and workplace culture.

The team, led in presentation by Executive Director Amy O’Hearn and including human-resources and building leaders, told the board Monday that exit‑survey analysis and leader feedback identified wide variation in onboarding and that a consistent process would better welcome and retain employees across roles.

Nut graf: The work group recommended a district-wide onboarding process that begins in HR and continues at the building level, creation of checklists for educational assistants and other roles, centralization of successful onboarding practices and resources into a living document, and follow-through steps for professional development including time for teachers to rework curriculum after training.

Amy O’Hearn said the recommendations came from analysis of both a 2023 staff survey and exit-survey data. The presenters provided concrete exit‑survey figures from prior reporting periods: in the 2023–24 exit-survey batch, 198 of 295 departing staff completed the survey; of those, the presenters reported 9 had resigned to take another position within the district, 142 resigned from the district and 47 self-identified as retired. For 2024–25 to date the team reported 141 of 164 exit surveys completed, with 14 resigning to accept another district position, 90 resigning from the district and 37 identifying as retired.

Presenters said the district’s mentor program for licensed staff and quarterly supervision contacts with curriculum staff were strengths, but that roughly 20% of respondents in one dataset indicated a need for clearer duties and training at hire. The team recommended an EA onboarding checklist, a site-level new-employee checklist, and an HR-triggered welcome email that kicks off a standardized building onboarding process.

“New staff deserve to have buildings welcome them and set them up for success,” said a presenter. The team also proposed a living school-community engagement resource guide to help leaders build welcoming, inclusive workplaces.

Board members asked how culture and onboarding effectiveness would be measured; the presenters said the district will repeat a staff survey and compare results year over year, and HR would follow up with building leaders to verify implementation. The team also said it would bring its recommendations to Superintendent Stallone for final approval for the 2025–26 school year.

Ending: The board received the report and asked follow-up questions; presenters said they will present recommended implementation steps to the superintendent for consideration in next year’s planning cycle and will track results through future staff surveys.