District presents 2025 "State of the Schools" review: MCAs, ACT, interventions and career programs

Tanya Franks, presenting the district's "State of the Schools" academic review for 2024–25, told the board the evening's focus was academic achievement and graduation rates and that the presentation combined statewide test results and formative assessment data (FAST).

"When you do see the science slides tonight from the principals, just know that 21 through '24 were the same assessment, 25 is the new assessment," Franks said, warning the board not to compare science results from 2025 directly with prior years because the standards and test changed.

Sean, a high school principal, reviewed high school outcomes and said the district saw gains in reading proficiency and in graduation outcomes for English learners, while math results dipped. He reported a sharp decline in the share of students meeting ACT college‑readiness benchmarks: "Only 20.8% of our students were there," he said, down from prior years when the district had been closer to the mid‑30s percentage-wise. He said the district's goal had been about 40% and that the drop reflected a regression the staff is trying to reverse.

Sean said the district also focused on increasing Minnesota Comprehensive Assessment (MCA) participation, which he said had been low for some cohorts and which affects data interpretation. He described the district's intervention work, noting an eighth‑grade intervention produced an approximate 6‑point gain for participating students versus peers not in the intervention.

Franks and school leaders described several instructional strategies and next steps presented to the board:

- Increased classroom walkthroughs: administrators had completed roughly 88 walkthroughs so far in the year, compared with 45–55 for a full prior year; 72% of walkthroughs met the district's positive‑feedback goals. - Strengthened tier‑1 instruction with clearer lesson targets and frequent checks for understanding to allow rapid intervention after initial teaching. - Development and implementation of proficiency scales across courses, with a staff commitment to have scales in place by December 1 and professional development scheduled to support their use. - An instructional audit of course practices, including how often students read independently, write multi‑paragraph papers, and engage in extended reading and writing tasks.

The presentation also highlighted career‑focused work. Sean described a planned CEO (Chief Executive Officer) entrepreneurship course — a yearlong class taught by local business leaders that pairs students with community mentors and culminates in a trade‑show style event. The district and partners plan final fundraising to launch the course in 2026. The district's academy program now offers three pathways: business and communication; engineering, manufacturing and technology; and natural resources; a separate pathway covers human and health services.

Tanya Franks described the Area Learning Center (ALC) results: a four‑year graduation rate of 27% and a seven‑year rate of 63% for the ALC, and the use of Accuplacer tests as a postsecondary placement instrument for those students. The online academy — in its second year as a district‑run program — enrolled 42 students this year, with 20 eleventh graders and 4 twelfth graders among that total; Franks said the district is working to strengthen online instructional practice and elective offerings.

Tyler Johnson, principal at Southwest Middle School, reviewed building‑level FAST and MCA data and school goals for belonging, social‑emotional supports and attendance. He said the school moved from an eight‑period day to a seven‑period day, which increased average instructional minutes in core classes even though it reduced some elective time.

Board members asked questions about MCA participation, multiple measures for assessment, PSAT/PreACT availability and how students are selected for the CEO program. Franks and principals said the CEO selection is a blind application process judged by a community board, typically accepting about 12–15 students in the first year and up to about 20 in larger programs.