District outlines plan for third-grade promotion tied to ATLAS assessment and intervention supports

District leaders told the board the new third-grade promotion requirement will be in effect this school year and the district is preparing parent outreach and targeted supports.

"Beginning this year, all third grade students must demonstrate proficiency in language arts in order to be promoted in fourth grade," Mister Evans said, naming the ATLAS summative assessment as the measure. He said the district first received state guidance August 29 and has been preparing plans to inform families and provide supports.

Evans listed the exemptions the district will follow: English learners with fewer than three years of intervention, students previously retained, and students with documented good cause such as traumatic injury. For students flagged at level 1 on interim screenings beginning in second grade, Evans said the district will send letters to families and intensify monitoring and supports.

A district staff member described specific instructional steps: the district has implemented Lexia (a state-approved intervention), provided teacher training over the summer and plans further training in October after additional data is collected. The staff member said the Lexia diagnostic creates individualized learning paths and that teachers will combine the computer-based program with one-on-one or small-group interventions.

The staff member also noted the district's testing timeline: K'3 screening is complete for the primary building, DLM testing has begun, and ATLAS interim exams will start in early October; district co-op staff will support in-depth data analysis once interim results arrive.

Board materials and presenters stressed that interventions are intended to be documented and frequent, and that parental communication will begin early for students at risk of retention.