Yellow Springs Exempted Village board reviews national school visits; plans X‑block pilot, freight‑farm and STEAM steps

At a July 31 work session, Terry (presenter) and district staff summarized spring and summer visits to innovative schools across the country and proposed a series of pilots and policy items the board will consider as part of the district’s master facilities and program planning.

Terry led the slide presentation, beginning with High‑Tech High in San Diego and stressing the district’s heavy use of project‑based learning. "Everything is PBL," she said, noting the school’s practice of curating student work into temporary displays and legacy pieces to show mastery and build school culture. She and staff emphasized equity and social‑justice principles observed during the visits and recommended adapting selected practices locally.

The presentation highlighted specific models the district plans to test or pursue: an ungraded middle‑school "X‑block" pilot to combine grades 6–8 for flexible, mastery‑driven work; freight‑farm hydroponic containers to provide work‑study and life‑skills opportunities for high‑needs students; a push for STEAM designation (grades 5–12) led by the middle‑school STEM teacher; and a dedicated Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Belonging council to guide equity work.

Jack (speaker) described the X‑block pilot as an "ungraded period" staffed to create small groups for social‑emotional learning, intervention and career‑focused experiential learning. "We're gonna be piloting our middle school this year," he said, outlining goals that include building school community, providing interventions beyond software, and creating space for deep, interest‑aligned learning.

On career and technical education, presenters noted South Fayette’s freight‑farm installation — a retrofitted shipping container hydroponic system — that staff said can yield the equivalent of up to five acres of produce and is typically grant‑funded. "For them it was grant funded," Terry said, adding the district would explore grant options if it pursues a similar model locally. The team also discussed using RIASEC (Holland) career assessments and embedding "world‑of‑work" exposure across grades beginning in kindergarten.

Early‑learning examples were reviewed as well: play‑studio spaces and kindergarten lab stations that use stations and recycled materials to teach collaboration and design thinking; presenters suggested a "peace path" for conflict resolution could be implemented quickly at Mills Lawn.

Administrative and procedural items were flagged for upcoming agendas. Terry said the board will see a proposed naming‑rights/commemoration policy (Neola will draft language) connected to the master facilities project and noted a property‑owner request to release a 1987 deed restriction; she said parts of the deed discussion are executive‑session, attorney‑client privileged material. A proposed overnight out‑of‑state college‑visit trip for high‑school students is planned for the Sept. 4 agenda, and the district aims to limit student cost for multi‑visit cycles to about $100 per year.

No formal board votes were recorded during the work session. Presenters identified next steps: targeted pilots over the next two years, grant outreach for freight‑farm or coding programs (the "Ohio Codes" grant was mentioned), alignment of professional learning and student ICAP meetings for grades 8–12, and bringing schematic design documents for facilities to the board in September for approval.

The session closed with board members calling for a pragmatic district land‑use/master plan focused on preserving space for athletics and program needs while accommodating new initiatives. Terry said the district will continue staff and community engagement and will return to the board with draft policies and funding options.

The work session adjourned with follow‑ups noted for future regular meetings.