At a Nov. 10 School Committee meeting, Assistant Superintendent Young presented a comprehensive district data review covering MCAS accountability data, K–12 benchmark screeners (DIBELS and STAR/ALEKS), literacy and math implementation plans, and changes to instructional leadership and teacher support.

Key points: Young said the district administered an open community survey earlier in the deliberations and then walked the committee through internal metrics showing strong year‑over‑year growth on DIBELS for K–3 cohorts (where implementation of science-of-reading training began earlier), while noting implementation timelines mean higher‑grade cohorts are at earlier stages of program rollout. She summarized that the district’s lowest‑performing groups are exhibiting strong growth but that overall achievement levels have not yet fully recovered to pre‑pandemic norms.

AP and high‑school results: Young reported a large increase in AP participation and pass rates since 2023, citing a districtwide total of roughly 508 students enrolled in AP courses and notable pass rates (in one cited subject more than 90% earned a score of 3 or higher). The district expanded AP offerings and invested in teacher training and multiple‑teacher staffing for AP courses to build capacity.

Math and personalized learning: The district is piloting ALEKS as a personalized math tool and is implementing Reveal Math across elementary grades, with a caution that new curriculum implementation can produce short‑term dips before longer‑term gains. Young said ALEKS mastery percentages are consistent with the portion of the school year elapsed and reported progress by school and grade-level pie charts used to track mastery.

Instructional structures and next steps: The district added teacher‑leadership positions and middle‑school department heads, embedded ILT (instructional leadership team) equity protocols in all buildings and increased coaching and professional development. Young emphasized using data in PLCs and IOTs to translate screening and benchmark data into targeted instruction. She also described district efforts to address summer learning loss and grant-seeking for high‑dose tutoring.

What officials asked: Committee members praised growth for high‑needs student cohorts and asked about summer slide mitigation, AP course selection and program sustainability. Young said the district is pursuing grant opportunities for summer programming and tutoring and will continue to monitor implementation fidelity as programs scale.

What’s next: Committee and staff said they will use the presented data to inform school improvement plans, redistricting discussion and budget/prioritization decisions in coming months.