Superintendent outlines summer hiring, communications goals and student research recognized through Digital Promise

Superintendent Dr. Freeman delivered a back-to-school report summarizing recruitment, staff recognition and district priorities for the year. He said the district hired four administrators, two coordinators, ten paraprofessionals and 23 teachers over the summer and recognized retirees and staff at convocation. Dr. Freeman said the district would roll out a Portrait of a Graduate in K—1 classrooms, continue the career-language (RIASEC) initiative in its third year and expand STEM and computational thinking at the elementary level.

From a communications perspective, Dr. Freeman said the district would emphasize employee appreciation, student achievement and student voice and aim to publish at least 10 stories per month through social channels and the district website. He announced a new parent engagement series called "Coffee and a Q" with the first event scheduled for Sept. 30 at the Trolley Barn focused on career-language work.

The board heard a student research presentation from Quakertown students who participated in the League of Innovative Students, a national initiative of Digital Promise. The student team described surveying peers about motivation and reported that many students showed peak motivation after lunch and strongest engagement in hands-on, experiential and collaborative learning. Students said the findings were shared with teachers at a faculty meeting and that faculty responded with questions. Principals and staff praised the students for the leadership experience.

Dr. Freeman and staff said the district will share supplemental data about career-language and computational-thinking initiatives in coming months and highlighted that the district's MTSS program had received state-level recognition.