Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Academic Progress topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
District reports modest midyear academic gains and highlights expanded learning growth
Summary
Assistant Superintendent Mendez and staff presented midyear data showing projected improvements in state assessment readiness, growth in expanded learning programming (ELOP/MARS), reductions in chronic absenteeism and suspension rates, and questions from trustees about attendance and instructional supports.
Merced City School District staff told trustees on March 10 that midyear assessments and program metrics show modest academic gains, expanded learning growth and improved attendance trends, though trustees pressed for more detail about how to move students two grade levels behind back to grade level.
Assistant Superintendent Mr. Mendez presented district progress assessment and I‑Ready projections: about 36% of students are on track to meet or exceed standards in English language arts and roughly 26% in mathematics, with the math figure representing a 4 percentage point improvement over prior data. District staff also cited roughly 16,000 hours of student out‑of‑class learning logged on the IXL platform this year and reported that many sites are showing the targeted ‘‘stretch growth’’ for certain grades. Mendez emphasized that data use and professional development are enabling targeted interventions.
Crystal Russell, family and student engagement coordinator, presented quarter‑3 data on the district’s lowest‑performing students and targeted programs: MCSD serves about 10,878 students districtwide; current average daily attendance reported at 93.6%; chronic absenteeism at 22.9% (a slight decrease from last year); and participation in expanded learning programs serving roughly 1,500 students daily. Russell reported program impacts: among participants, average ELA increases of 23.5 points and math increases of 14.4 points versus district averages of lower magnitudes, and a program average daily attendance of about 95%.
Trustees asked detailed, operational questions: which students in the lowest-performing cohort are accessing expanded learning opportunities; how chronic absenteeism intersects with travel time and long bus rides; and what specific instructional supports would help students two grades behind. Staff said they would provide follow-up analyses, including research into bus time correlations and more information on classroom-level instructional supports and the composition of ELOP participants.
What happens next: Staff will include additional instructional and attendance-tracking detail in the end-of-year educational services update and will collaborate with county and neighboring districts on attendance strategies.
