Geary County Schools spotlight early childhood center; Fort Riley Middle highlights reading and behavior gains

Geary County Schools administrators presented academic spotlights for the district’s Early Childhood Center (ECC) and Fort Riley Middle School (FRMS) during the board meeting, reporting enrollment counts, assessment results and changes to behavior supports.

The ECC reported program-wide enrollment of about 690 students — 258 three-year-olds and 432 four-year-olds — with a wait list of 128 three-year-olds and 52 four-year-olds, principal Brian Scruggs said. Scruggs told the board that 455 ECC students are affiliated with the military, including 317 on Fort Riley and 38 in town, and that the program recently switched to the FastBridge screener so the district can compare early childhood data with kindergarten and districtwide results.

Those FastBridge results, presented as fall and winter snapshots, showed about 62–63% of ECC students in the low‑risk category for reading and roughly 57–58% at low risk in math; school staff reported modest shifts between fall and winter and described deeper questioning and more small‑group instruction as evidence of improved instruction.

At FRMS, principal Miss Brennan summarized the school’s data, noting student data talks and goal setting across advisories and PLTs, improved parent participation at student‑led conferences and a drop in chronic absenteeism from 16.2% (school year ending 2023) to 12.9% (school year ending 2024). Brennan said the school saw growth in the number of students receiving “threes and fours” on state CAP assessments in ELA, math and science but acknowledged the school did not meet every yearly progress measure.

Both presenters described efforts to reduce out‑of‑school suspension (OSS) and in‑school suspension (ISS) by increasing use of detentions and follow‑up restorative conversations. FRMS leaders said referrals for levels 2 and 3 behaviors have declined in recent years and that the school now requires teacher follow‑up conversations after a level 2 referral to repair classroom relationships.

District staff said early‑childhood teachers will emphasize more collaborative learning and continue PBIS implementation, and FRMS will continue content collaboration and parent‑school partnerships as action steps to close remaining gaps.

Board members asked about deployment impacts on enrollment and the district’s ability to track students who leave; presenters said the district monitors housing and deployment indicators and will report projected moves when available.

The presentations concluded with board discussion of program successes and next steps in professional development and family engagement.