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District survey shows safety perception gap between students and staff; mental health and retention flagged as priorities
Summary
Wayne County Public Schools presented Hanover stakeholder survey results showing 2,710 students, 702 staff and 536 parents responded; staff rated safety and professional development far more positively than students and the district highlighted student well‑being, staff retention and mental‑health supports as critical focus areas.
Miss Tarpe, presenting Hanover’s stakeholder survey to the Wayne County Board of Education, said the district received responses from 2,710 secondary students, 702 staff members and 536 parents and caregivers. She described professional development and family engagement as strengths and identified student well‑being and staff retention as the survey’s critical focus areas.
“Our leaders are the fact that our professional development and family engagement turned out to be highly important to our stakeholders,” Miss Tarpe said. She reported that technology integration, responsiveness to family needs and parent communication received positive ratings districtwide, with 70%, 76% and 77% favorable responses respectively.
Tarpe highlighted a safety perception gap: “Our students felt 50%… 56% of our students felt that they were safe, whereas 92% of our staff felt that our schools were safe,” she told board members, noting students may receive distressing information outside school that affects how safe they feel when they return.
She also flagged an “inspiration disconnect,” saying 85% of staff believe they inspire students but only 37% of students agreed, and recommended work to increase classroom engagement and real‑world connections. Tarpe added that military households tended to rate needs more conservatively and emphasized social supports and college preparation for those families.
Board members asked whether Hanover provided school‑level breakdowns for behavior and mental‑health trends. Tarpe said the survey was district‑level and did not include school‑by‑school data; she noted a separate staff survey administered by school would offer more granular results.
Why it matters: the district plans to use the survey to direct resources and follow up with a school‑level staff survey that may identify targeted needs. The board asked staff to continue work on climate, mental‑health supports and recruitment and retention strategies.
The board did not take formal action on the Hanover report; members used the presentation and Q&A to identify next steps for more granular data and targeted interventions.
