Unidentified Speaker 7 presents draft Parkrose SD 3 goals, focusing on attendance, math and special-education costs

Unidentified Speaker 7, a district presenter at the Parkrose SD 3 working session, outlined draft board goals Wednesday, centering on attendance, math achievement and high-cost special-education obligations as the district heads into budget season.

The presenter said the district’s regular-attender rate is about 55% and proposed a board goal to increase regular attenders by 20 percentage points districtwide, with specific, higher targets for some schools. "If we are smiling big tomorrow night, because it looks like we potentially are gonna pass the local option," the presenter said, explaining that any levy result would change how the district maps resources and priorities for 2025–26.

Why it matters: the board framed the goals as both a response to immediate budget uncertainty and as a means to focus limited resources. The presenter identified four priorities: preparing for the local-option levy and state budgeting, reducing chronic absenteeism, raising math proficiency through "stretch growth" interventions, and pressing for legislative fixes to high-cost special-education reimbursements and other unfunded mandates.

Key details and data: the presenter defined chronic absenteeism as missing at least 10 school days (the 90% attendance threshold) and described research linking early absenteeism to weaker third-grade reading outcomes. On special education, the presenter cited the district’s exposure to high-cost placements—"group homes, 9 kids, roughly 1.2 million"—and urged advocacy for expanded reimbursement. For math, the presenter recommended measuring both "typical growth" (one year’s growth in one year) and ‘‘stretch growth’’ (two years’ growth in one year), setting a target that about one-third of students achieve stretch growth in the coming period.

Board and student discussion: board members and student representatives took part in an extended exchange about root causes and responses. Topics included transportation limits and driver shortages, the impact of COVID-era learning disruptions (especially among current middle-school students), barriers for families such as health access and housing mobility, and strategies to re-engage students (mentorship, trusted community partners, improved communication and student‑led outreach). Student speakers suggested peer-led motivation and school-climate initiatives as complements to district policy.

Next steps: the presenter said staff will bring formal goals to the board business meeting for refinement and a vote, with evaluation materials due in time for an April working-session review. The board also agreed to circulate evaluation questions and related materials to members by the end of March.

Sources: Remarks and data presented by Unidentified Speaker 7 during the working session; student and board member exchanges recorded in the transcript.

The board plans to take action on the formal goals at its next business meeting.