Stillwater staff recommend making 8th‑grade global studies a year‑long course

District instructional leaders recommended on Monday that Stillwater Area Public Schools move eighth‑grade global studies from a single semester to a year‑long core course so teachers have time to cover the state’s benchmarks in more depth.

"They teach with their hair on fire," said Anne Giardino, principal at Oakland Middle School, describing global studies teachers trying to cover 48 benchmarks in one semester. Skye Hookstra, the district’s K–12 social studies and ELA supervisor, told the board the change is driven by new state standards and a multi‑year curriculum review.

Hookstra said the recommendation aims to give teachers "breathing room" to teach geography, history, citizenship and economics in sufficient depth. She said the proposed change would be cost neutral for the district and would be implemented for the next school year, with curriculum development scheduled during three remaining professional development days.

Board members pressed presenters on the schedule‑related consequences. Principals Kristen Rolling and Giardino said the shift would reduce eighth‑grade elective time from four semesters to three, which could limit students’ ability to take two year‑long electives or combine a year‑long music class with a world language course offered for high‑school credit. Hookstra said placement tests and registration processes could be adjusted to preserve access to language credits for students who seek them.

Chair Sherman emphasized the district’s obligation to meet state social studies standards: "We're not meeting the obligation of teaching social studies in a responsible fashion," he said, arguing for a change that prioritizes standards coverage over elective choice.

District staff said they will communicate the plan publicly in December, ahead of registration, and expect to solicit feedback from teachers and families. No vote was taken at the meeting; the recommendation will return to the board later in the process for any formal action.

The next procedural steps: curriculum teams will use scheduled PD time this fall to develop the year‑long course outline so teachers and families have options available during registration.