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Middle‑level leaders describe academic and career planning, responsive classroom PD and literacy gains — but trustees press on gaps
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Summary
District middle-level leaders told the board they are expanding Academic and Career Planning (ACP) across grades 5–8, using Xello for career exploration, and seeing literacy and math improvements; presenters acknowledged persistent gaps for some groups and noted a roughly 14% proficiency gain last year among Black students.
Ken Metz, the district’s secondary director of curriculum, instruction and assessment, and middle-school principals presented an update on the district’s middle-level work, focusing on integrated Academic and Career Planning (ACP), responsive-classroom professional development and recent assessment results.
"Knowing our students' stories and building upon their strengths inspire them locally, and so that they are prepared globally," Metz said as he introduced ACP goals and grade-level sequencing for career-readiness skills. Presenters described use of Xello for student career exploration, grade-based pathway work, and classroom activities that help students link classwork to local labor demand.
Staff described a districtwide push on responsive-classroom strategies and two feedback cycles this year in which coaches observed full school days and provided actionable feedback covering arrival and dismissal routines, lunchroom dynamics and instructional language. Joanna Cree and other administrators said the PD focused on "productive talk" strategies that teachers then implemented across content areas.
Administrators reported winter-to-winter gains in literacy and math overall but acknowledged disparities. "For all of our groups... Hispanic students and students with IEPs is a little bit lower than what we wanted it to be," one presenter said, adding that math scores for those same groups improved. Metz also told the board that "last year, our Black students specifically had about a 14% jump in growth in proficiency," while cautioning that the district must continue targeted interventions to close remaining gaps.
Trustees probed the teams on disaggregated data, cohort tracking, and supports for students who report not having a trusted adult. Presenters described targeted outreach systems: advisory lessons, a three-question sense-of-belonging survey, and teacher assignment to follow up with students who identify gaps in support. The board discussed transportation barriers to after-school clubs and the district’s strategy to increase participation by fifth graders.
This presentation was informational; the board did not take formal action during the update but engaged in substantive Q&A that identified follow-up data requests and next-step priorities for the 2026–27 school year.
