Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Academic Priorities 2025 topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
District outlines academic priorities: new STAR screener, expanded PBIS and career pathways
Summary
Deputy Superintendent Dr. Nicole Holt and Dr. Crystal Majors told the board the district has adopted a STAR universal screener and Renaissance DNA tools, expanded PBIS and professional learning, launched Newcomer Academy hubs, and grown future educator and CTE pathways; state assessment data were not yet available.
Deputy Superintendent Dr. Nicole Holt and Dr. Crystal Majors presented the district’s academic priorities (governing priority 1): a new STAR universal screener, rollout of Renaissance DNA formative assessment tools, continued curriculum implementation (Reveal Math), expanded Positive Behavior Interventions and Supports (PBIS), and program growth in newcomer supports, future educators and career and technical education.
Holt said the STAR screener lets the district roll up an overall district reading and math proficiency score for the first time. “This is essentially our baseline data,” she said, noting state assessment results were not released at the time of the meeting and that the district anticipates a fuller update when state data are available in the fall. The presenters emphasized using data and common formative assessments to guide instruction and intervention rather than relying solely on outside resources.
Majors described implementation steps in math (Reveal Math) and professional learning supports: model classrooms, recorded “learning lab” lessons for peer coaching, quarterly in‑class observations by data‑driven instructional specialists, and targeted training days. Majors said more than 475 paraprofessionals attended a systemwide August training and that 53 substitute teachers participated in summer professional learning sessions.
The presentation also highlighted program expansion and outcomes: 23 new participants signed into the future educators program (representation from all five high schools), a pathways for peer professionals partnership with Missouri State University that converted 4 of 10 summer participants into provisional certified hires for special education vacancies, and 581 students earning distinguished or advanced scores on PLTW end‑of‑course assessments.
Board members pressed for details: they asked how teachers choose professional learning, how Newcomer Academy hubs are sited and how students are selected, and when state data will be reported (presenters said they expect state releases in November). Dr. Majors and Dr. Holt said site leaders choose targeted supports for strategic support schools and emphasized that many of the interventions are intended to be sustainable and data‑driven.
Ending: The board thanked the presenters and moved to additional business.
