Creighton Elementary District staff presented a proposal to replace the district'wide 40/60/80 cut-score model with new, grade-level interim cut scores normed on local student data and vendor mimics. The presentation argued the change will raise the statistical correlation between benchmark results and the Arizona state assessment (AASA), giving teachers and families a more accurate early-year picture of likely year-end outcomes.

District staff told the board they asked Renaissance (the vendor for the district's Benchmark/DNA assessments) to analyze Creighton'specific data. The vendor study on Creighton eighth-grade math showed higher correlations when the district'specific cut scores were used than under the old 40/60/80 approach. Staff described the target correlation threshold as about 0.6'a level they said is considered a meaningful relationship between interim measures and state scores.

District presenters described how the old model concentrated students into the lowest color band at the start of the year (the so-called "sea of red") and produced a lower early correlation with the AASA. Under the proposed cut scores, staff said benchmark pie charts will show fewer students concentrated at the bottom and earlier movement to yellow/green/blue, which they said will allow teachers and families to set more attainable short-term goals and to adjust instruction earlier in the school year.

Staff also described related interim measures that will be used to track progress on board goals through the year: DNA benchmark measures, FastBridge skill screeners, and a new Renaissance language mimic for emerging multilingual (EL) students. The district explained where each interim measure fits: DNA benchmarks to mirror standards, FastBridge to track discrete skills (fluency, early reading composites), and the Renaissance mimic for EL language proficiency (being piloted this fall through a multi-district collaboration called the Arizona Assessment Collaborative).

Board members pressed for clarity on how the percentages on the various measures relate to common grading expectations (for example, that 62% correct on some posttests corresponds to AASA proficiency levels rather than a classroom-grade-style C), and for materials they can use with parents so the change does not look like a lowering of expectations. District staff said they plan additional communications and practice testing for students (e.g., more comprehensive DNA practice in winter/spring; oral reading fluency screeners in first grade) and will pilot the EL mimic this fall so benchmark-to-state correlations can be recalculated next summer.

The board did not vote on the interim measures during the study session. Staff said the interim-measures package will be an action item on the August/TBD governing-board agenda for formal adoption. The district indicated it will keep the existing annual targets previously adopted by the board; only the interim cut-score thresholds and the choice of which interim assessments to monitor were proposed to change.

Why this matters: staff argued the re-norming should reduce false alarms early in the year and make progress-monitoring graphs more actionable, enabling earlier instructional pivots for students. The proposed changes also affect what families will see in reports and what teachers will use for short-term goal-setting.

What's next: staff will finalize the interim-measures resolution and materials for the board's vote at the next scheduled public meeting. District staff also said they will prepare parent-facing visuals and examples to accompany any adopted changes.