Tolland School District principals outline midyear progress on strategic plan and student supports

Principals from Tolland School District presented a midyear look at work tied to the district strategic plan, highlighting instructional leadership teams, expanded MTSS supports, family engagement and new digital platforms for college and career planning.

Daryl Jarrett, introduced as principal at Volk/Center School, described a system of instructional leadership teams (ILTs) that meet regularly to align department plans with school- and district-level goals. Jarrett said ILTs meet two to three times monthly and lead department meetings to set focused agendas, and that instructional coaches and interventionists regularly observe and work with students in classrooms to provide individualized support.

At the elementary and middle levels, presenters described routine PLC (professional learning community) time, articulation meetings between grade levels, and peer visits in which teachers observe one another and debrief promising practices. “We have a very fixed and set agenda, very focused on the work that we’re doing,” Jarrett said, summarizing the structure meant to sustain consistent instruction.

Speakers described Tolland’s approach to MTSS (multi-tiered systems of support) as a core mechanism for academic and behavioral interventions. Presenters said MTSS operates on six- to eight-week cycles with mid-cycle check-ins and progress monitoring; students may move between tiers based on data. The district also emphasized social-emotional learning using the Second Step curriculum in K–5 and staff-led lessons in middle school, with peer mediation and targeted social-skills groups available.

Family engagement and culture were also on the agenda. A district leader explained the district’s use of ParentSquare for efficient family communications and listed recurring events — band and chorus concerts, a winter family night on March 5, and student-led conferences in March — intended to deepen family connection and student voice. Cross-school activities, including visits from high-school students to elementary classrooms, were cited as examples of building continuity K–12.

At the high school, leaders described replacing Naviance with SchoolLinks to streamline college recommendation letters and service-hour tracking, and changes to a twice-weekly connections period to provide direct supports for seniors on portfolios, capstones and postsecondary planning. School leaders also noted increased tracking and feedback loops between MTSS providers and teachers to better target supports.

Board members asked how the district turns goals into accountable action. A board member asked, “How are you using action steps to hold ourselves accountable?” Presenters replied the school-planning process begins in early summer, draws on SSTAC data and staff/parent surveys, and produces data-informed action steps that are monitored through PLCs and leadership meetings.

The presentations closed with examples of extracurricular and culture-building activities — assemblies, food drives, student clubs, and peer recognition programs — that administrators said complement instructional priorities.

Next steps cited by presenters included continued PLC focus, peer visits scheduled in the coming weeks, and the strategic-plan process the district began at a kickoff meeting the night before the board meeting.