Superintendent outlines SDIP year‑2 progress and UDL rollout; district to focus representation and means of expression next school year

Superintendent Dr. Chu reviewed progress on the district’s Strategic District Improvement Plan (SDIP) during the Westwood School Committee meeting on April 1, saying the district will concentrate next year’s professional development on Universal Design for Learning (UDL) representation and means of expression.

"This year, it's still been divided. But next year, we're really going to focus on UDL," Dr. Chu said, describing a phased approach that aims to map multi-year professional learning to teachers’ licensure and school improvement goals.

Why it matters: The SDIP frames multi-year priorities for instruction, equity and operations. Dr. Chu’s update summarized accomplishments in year two — including rollout of an elementary engagement framework, teacher-facing ‘‘look‑fors,’’ transition of special-education documentation into PowerSchool, and expanded training in restorative practices — and outlined actions planned for year three.

Key points from Dr. Chu’s update: - UDL roll‑out: Elementary teams developed district "look‑fors" for engagement; the district plans to roll out representation and the means of expression frameworks next school year, with content-aligned PD scheduled to follow. - Special-education platforms: The district moved IEP and 504 documentation into PowerSchool and is retraining staff on the new state-compliant IEP format. - Professional development and staffing: The district piloted EdCamp-style PD to give teachers choice in sessions, continued restorative-practices training (level 1 & 2), and is planning targeted restorative-conferencing training for counselors next year. - Hiring and policy tools: A new hiring manual for managers was prepared with HR to streamline hiring practices and reduce process barriers. - Curriculum and report cards: The district created a new pre‑K report card and plans to convene a report-card review committee next year for elementary, middle and high school. - Programs and operations: The district is exploring a budget‑neutral way to expand elementary physical education and wellness and is assessing redistricting/redconfiguration work that will relate to the Robinson feasibility study.

Dr. Chu said the SDIP update will feed directly into school improvement plans and the next strategic plan. Committee members asked for concrete data collection to evaluate recent changes — for example, monitoring tardies and bus start/arrival times after the district’s revised start-time schedule — and requested follow‑up survey data for families after the fall rollout.

Director of Special Education Gerard Coughlin and other administrators described operational changes underway, including how PowerSchool will standardize IEP documentation. Committee members praised innovations that ease teacher workload, including the district’s recent acquisition of two vans to support the ROUTES program and the decision to expand phone‑management tools in some buildings.

Ending: Dr. Chu said next-year work will translate district priorities into building-level action plans, and that the district will present a proposed new strategic plan for committee approval during the 2025–26 planning cycle.