Coos Bay SD 9 superintendent reports gains in attendance and math access, outlines tsunami planning and literacy work

Superintendent David Ainsworth told the Coos Bay School District 9 board that several schools have made measurable progress on short-term “sprint” goals for attendance, reduced failure rates and increased access to SuccessMaker math software, and that the district is expanding work on the science of reading and tsunami evacuation planning.

Ainsworth said the district set a 90% daily attendance goal and a 60-minute-per-week SuccessMaker target for elementary grades. He highlighted Marshfield Junior High’s failure rate as “consistently below that threshold of 10%,” and said Marshfield High has reduced, but not yet met, its target. He said Sunset showed “tremendous progress,” noting a sixth-grade attendance increase the superintendent characterized on slide notes as roughly 65% to 84%.

Why it matters: the sprint-goal work guides short-term, school-level interventions that the district says are intended to reduce failure rates and increase student engagement. Ainsworth said adaptive math software helps teachers individualize instruction, a priority he named alongside expanding alternative-education options.

Supporting details and context Ainsworth described SuccessMaker as an adaptive tool that “allows our teachers” to differentiate when some students are ahead and some are behind. He said elementary minutes on SuccessMaker went up at several schools, and that Millicoma has been a district leader on usage. The superintendent acknowledged tradeoffs: board members and staff discussed whether dedicating time to adaptive software reduces time for other activities such as small-group instruction, arts or physical education.

On literacy, the superintendent and district staff highlighted the Oregon Early Literacy Framework and the district’s “science of reading” work. A video shown during the meeting featured a literacy coach and staff describing phonics and phonemic-awareness practices. Ainsworth said Oregon Department of Education reviewers recently visited Eastside and identified the school as a leader in the state for science-of-reading implementation.

Safety and emergency planning Ainsworth said the district continues to revise its emergency operation plans (EOPs) and has moved from internal review to external coordination with Coos County emergency officials and neighboring districts. He said a county-wide tsunami and evacuation meeting is scheduled with Coquille, North Bend, Coos Bay and Reedsport stakeholders and that the district will host community tsunami-evacuation events, beginning with a meeting at Marshfield High School’s Heritage Hall at 6 p.m. on Jan. 30.

Board discussion Board members pressed on how SuccessMaker minutes are counted and whether the software’s time targets are the best use of instruction minutes. Ainsworth said the district is trying to find a “sweet spot” and emphasized that he does not want elementary students on devices “all day,” but that the software can help personalize math instruction. Board members asked for continued review of tradeoffs between technology time and other instructional activities.

Ending Ainsworth said the district will deploy the state student (SEDS) survey in late February or early March for qualitative feedback and will bring a fuller set of sprint-goal data to the board post and next meetings. He closed by praising staff and site administrators for the “collective effort” producing the early gains.