Board member urges balance of graduation rates with student learning after superintendent presentation

Member Kelly used her time after Superintendent Hart's presentation to clarify that her earlier question was not intended as an attack. "I didn't want that to appear as though I were I was attacking Superintendent Hart," Kelly said, adding that the board must balance efforts to raise graduation rates with protecting and promoting student learning.

Kelly said she is passionate about ensuring the district does not push graduation "at the expense of learning," urging the board to weigh graduation metrics alongside measures of student learning. The comment followed the superintendent's presentation; no further action or motion on metrics was recorded in the transcript.

The concern reflects an internal policy tension the board monitors between accountability metrics and instructional outcomes; Member Boggess and others later praised family and community supports for student success, but the transcript includes no formal policy proposal or vote arising from the exchange.