District reports broad gains on YTOP and ACT as new curriculum rollout continues

At the Sweetwater County School District #2 work session, Dr. Demery presented the 2024–25 YTOP and ACT results and administrators described ongoing curriculum work and assessment alignment.

Dr. Demery said that every elementary and the middle school in the district met or exceeded state expectations on the YTOP indicators; Monroe and Harrison were highlighted for substantial gains. He noted that statewide only about 12% of schools exceed expectations, making the district's performance notable. At the high school, officials said students exceeded the state average on four of five ACT measures; graduation rate and credits-earned metrics were also discussed as important high-school indicators.

Superintendent Scott Cooper reviewed the district's recent curriculum adoption, introduced in the transcript as 'Hooten Mifflin.' She said the adoption included a five-year commitment to support implementation with professional development, instructional facilitators and cross-school meetings. The district is aligning assessments to the new curriculum so that student movement between schools (the superintendent said about 37% of elementary students move between buildings) does not interrupt instructional continuity.

Administrators described instructional coaches' work, professional learning communities (PLCs), targeted interventions (including phonics instruction via a UFLY program) and high-school interventions such as revised 'win' periods that provide daily intervention instead of a weekly block. Trustees praised staff and teachers; the board reserved more detailed score breakdowns for the regular board meeting.

Board members and the superintendent cautioned that assessments are one measure and said they will continue to analyze data as the new curriculum and assessment alignment mature.