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Board hears strategic-plan update on safety, mental-health and attendance goals through 2029
Summary
District leaders presented the Lexington City Schools strategic plan goal focused on 'whole child, whole culture,' including a target to increase students' sense of safety by 5% annually and reduce chronic absenteeism from 34.5% to 22.5% by June 2029; staff described safety planning, staff training and a newly awarded $50,000 mental-health grant.
District leaders presented updates on the Lexington City Schools strategic plan section titled "Whole Child: Focus and Culture" during the April 1 board meeting.
Miss Jones introduced the initiative and said the district will pursue two principal targets through 2029: an annual 5% increase in students reporting school is a safe and engaging place where they belong, and a reduction in chronically absent students from 34.5% to 22.5% by June 2029.
Evelyn Foster, director of safety, described district actions to strengthen emergency preparedness, including implementing an Emergency Response Plan at each site, conducting facility risk assessments and sending principals and assistant principals to ICS (Incident Command System) training (the transcript lists ICS 100 and ICS 700). Foster said standardized crisis response protocols and a clear incident-command structure are in place.
April Thompson, senior director of student services and career and technical education, summarized mental-health and wellness supports. Thompson described "Wellness Wednesdays," the first annual Lexington City Schools Wellness Day on Feb. 17, and an employee assistance program available 24/7. Staff are required to complete a set of trainings by June 30, including youth mental-health first aid, suicide prevention, substance-abuse recognition, teen-dating-violence prevention, child-abuse prevention and trafficking-prevention modules via the Vector platform.
Thompson also said the district has been awarded a $50,000 grant to support student mental-health therapy and staff training as part of the safety grant for the 2025–26 academic year. Board members asked clarifying questions about ICS training and onboarding of new staff for required trainings; presenters said new staff are added to the training system and monitored monthly.
Board members responded positively to the emphasis on mental-health supports and attendance incentives; staff said additional data on attendance progress will be shared after the academic year ends.
