Eastchester releases Panorama survey results; district outlines expanded social‑emotional learning supports

Eastchester Union Free School District officials on Wednesday presented results from a Panorama survey of students in grades 3–12, saying more than 80% of students participated and that supportive adult relationships are the district’s strongest finding while emotion regulation and social awareness show room for growth.

The presentation, led by Dr. Bill Meyer, summarized three months of analysis and next steps for districtwide social‑emotional learning, including targeted coaching, expanded student clubs and partnerships, and plans to rerun the survey next year as a benchmark for progress.

District administrators said the survey was administered over roughly three weeks from mid‑March through spring break and that participation exceeded the 80% threshold the district set to consider results reliable. “Panorama is a really unique organization because it works to start to benchmark some of those interior aspects,” Dr. Meyer said, adding that the tool combines multiple‑choice indicators with open‑ended responses that help administrators identify what students find most difficult right now.

Why it matters: District leaders said the findings will guide professional development, classroom practice and student programming. Supportive relationships — students reporting trusted adults and positive classroom connections — emerged as the strongest protective factor, and administrators said they will build on that while addressing emotion regulation and social awareness across grade levels.

Key findings and district response

• Supportive relationships: District officials said both elementary and secondary students reported high levels of supportive relationships with teachers, family and peers. Dr. Meyer described that result as “the bread and butter of education” and credited teachers and counselors for the strength.

• Emotion regulation: Elementary students, in particular, reported difficulty regulating emotions. Building leaders said the district is expanding RULER implementation (recognizing, understanding, labeling, expressing and regulating emotions), using mood meters in classrooms, teaching the “meta‑moment” pause strategy and rolling out the next RULER step called the blueprint.

• Social awareness: Results showed opportunities to strengthen students’ ability to consider differing perspectives and engage in constructive disagreement. Administrators said they will pursue classroom strategies and partnership opportunities to broaden students’ exposure to diverse viewpoints.

Programs, personnel and funding cited

• SEL coaching: Dr. Amy List joined the district this year as an SEL coach funded through the district’s consortium grant; administrators said she has worked directly with teachers, monitors and support staff.

• Grant support: Officials said the district is participating in a Westchester consortium grant (reported in the presentation as $2,200,000) that paid for the Panorama survey, additional coaching, and expanded clinical supports, including onboarding a social worker through the Soarscribe Center.

• Partnerships and student programs: Administrators highlighted school‑level efforts such as the Lukumi Foundation partnership that supported fifth‑grade community service projects, the middle‑school Save/SAFE Promise Club (student‑led safety and connection work trained in Sandy Hook Promise’s Say Something curriculum), and plans to launch a Legends Club at the high school in partnership with the JCK Foundation to support ninth‑grade transition and senior mental‑health work.

• Data follow‑up: The district said responses are anonymous but described a process where concerning answers can be matched to student IDs for timely follow‑up by counselors.

Board discussion and next steps

Board members asked about expanding Save/SAFE Promise activities to other buildings, family well‑being nights and next steps for the high school’s advisory and Legends Club work. Administrators said they plan to rerun Panorama next year, expand the survey to include staff, embed SEL indicators within MTSS work for targeted support and continue parent‑facing programming (including sessions on cell phones and social media).

What the presentation did not decide: The survey and the related program expansions were presented for information; the board did not take a formal vote on policy or budget changes during the work session.

Looking ahead, administrators said they will provide a more detailed action calendar to the board next year, continue the RULER rollout and report back on whether the Panorama benchmark shows measurable change after additional programming.