Board approves fifth year of turnaround support for McDonough Middle School

The State Board of Education voted to extend McDonough Middle School's participation in the commissioners network for a fifth and final year, after department staff and school leaders cited measurable improvements at the Hartford school.

Department staff told the board McDonough showed academic gains this year, including a 4-percentage-point increase in English language arts and a 3.1-point rise in math, and notable acceleration in growth metrics: "growth rose by 11.1 percentage points," the presenter said. School leaders said the gains reflect a concentrated turnaround strategy focused on differentiated instruction, professional learning and mentoring.

Principal Marjorie Rice and Hartford leadership described changes that contributed to those results: expanded home visits, strengthened mentoring and a Wednesday enrichment block used for data-driven collaboration. The school also reported progress for multilingual learners: "22 students exited services in 2025," a presenter said, noting increased English proficiency and literacy gains.

Board members asked about staff stability and quantitative turnover measures. School leaders said the school has substantially stabilized staffing over the past two years and provided counts for a small staff roster (about 15 staff reported during the presentation), adding that any single departure has a large effect at that scale.

After discussion, a board member moved the extension and the board approved it by voice vote. There were no roll-call tallies recorded in the public transcript; the meeting minutes will show the official vote record.

The department said the extension is intended to move McDonough from supported turnaround toward sustained, internally driven improvement, with work in the coming year focused on embedding instructional and operational systems so gains are durable beyond state support.