USDB leaders report progress on data systems and enrichment programs, highlight canoe crew and tournaments

USDB leadership told the board that several operational improvements and student-focused enrichment efforts are moving forward, including a new centralized outreach-data contract and expanded extracurricular programming.

Assistant Superintendent Deborah Jacobson told the board the agency has spent about 52% of its total allocation year-to-date and that one-time administrative expenses (like software licenses) are responsible for a higher-than-average spend in the admin line. She also noted a $3,000,000 contingency line is shown in the report but is not included in bottom-line totals because it is not intended for routine use.

Assistant Superintendent Darren Nielsen described progress on multiple audit-related action items and said USDB had executed a contract with vendor Brackenwood to create a centralized outreach data system. "We've executed the contract with them, and we are just beginning some field testing," Nielsen said, and he added that he expects the system to be "fully operational by March." He said the centralized system will allow outreach-service data to be included in the student data backpack next year, improving data validation and reporting.

Nielsen also outlined internal efforts to increase transparency and staff communication, including an 'Ask Us Anything' tool that allows staff to submit anonymous questions and an office-hours webinar series for senior leaders. He said the data-governance work will coordinate with UCIMS and IEP-transfer efforts to make IEP data more transferable in the spring.

School leaders described enrichment and athletics activities for students. Michelle Tanner highlighted an evolving canoe-crew program (the "70/48") that pairs students with community accountability partners and includes fitness benchmarks; Tanner said it has become a sustained program with family and district support. A schools-for-the-deaf representative described the basketball program and upcoming inter-deaf-school tournaments, saying these events are "the highlight and the culmination" for many students and that staff are pursuing funding to expand spring academic and STEM activities.

Board members responded with offers to assist in fundraising and outreach; Member Kelly said she will work publicly to raise resources for extracurriculars over the next months. Nielsen and other leaders said they are exploring partnerships with Weber State University and the Utah State University disability-research program to pursue fundraising and work-based-learning opportunities.

Next steps include completing field testing and rolling the outreach data system into production by March; staff also expect advisory-council recommendations about enrichment funds to come to the full board in February.

Quotes

"We've executed the contract with them, and we are just beginning some field testing," Nielsen said of Brackenwood, and, "I expect we'll have that fully operational by the March."

"They have only spent about 52% of their total allocation," Deborah Jacobson said of year-to-date expenditures, noting one-time costs drive the admin line.