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Jacksonville North Pulaski board hears drop in referrals, Lexia gains and school grant awards
Summary
A principal reported large declines in behavioral referrals and gains on literacy software at Bobby Lester Elementary; the district also announced several school-level grant awards during the February board meeting.
At the Jacksonville North Pulaski School District board meeting in February, a school principal reported sharp declines in behavioral referrals and presented early literacy gains tied to a Lexia program, and district staff announced multiple school grant awards.
The presenter said the school had 250 referrals in 2023–24 and “as of right now, we're sitting at just under a hundred,” noting “59 fewer behavior referrals for fighting” and “a hundred and 3 fewer total classroom referrals.” The presenter also highlighted classroom instructional strategies promoted through AVID and said the district has seen “a big improvement in the overall data and instructional strategies.”
The presenter summarized literacy data shown on slides, saying the top graph “shows our Lexia. And you can see our starting point. That gray is 66% of the student population was below grade level material. 25% was in grade level and 9% was above. Currently, right now, you can see that our in grade level has grown to 38; 22% is above grade level material.” The presenter described an ongoing “Lexia challenge” used to encourage student participation.
The presenter also listed recent small grants and school incentives the school received: a $2,500 school grant to fund events for military families and two commercial bouncers, and $11,500 from PEER tied to academic growth on the ATLAS exam.
At the superintendent's report later in the meeting, the superintendent noted other district grant awards: Merle Taylor received $9,900; Amita Elementary received $9,900; Jacksonville Elementary received $20,900; and Jacksonville Middle School received $44,000 under the same student-growth incentive program.
Why it matters: reductions in referrals and measurable literacy gains are metrics the district uses to assess school climate and academic progress, while targeted grants are immediately available for school programming.
The presentation closed with the principal describing improved building culture, increased staff retention and a continuing Lexia push; district leaders placed the grant award figures on the record for use as planned by each school.
The board did not take further formal action on the presentation during the meeting.
