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Consultant tells board community conversations produced constructive input and support for district goals
Summary
Consultant Lynn Breedlove reported that community conversations yielded modest turnout but useful, constructive input aligned with the board’s goals (literacy, mathematics, belonging), and recommended experimenting with outreach formats and better documenting engagement outcomes.
A consultant who led the district’s community conversations told the Stoughton Area School District board that the outreach produced constructive feedback aligning with the board’s strategic goals and offered steps to deepen engagement.
Lynn Breedlove said overall turnout was lower than hoped but attendees provided high-quality input. He told the board he found no broad rejection of the district’s strategic goals (literacy, mathematics and belonging); instead, parents who attended appeared willing to engage thoughtfully and suggested priorities such as connecting students to the larger community through apprenticeships, arts programming and civic experiences.
Breedlove recommended three core practices for future engagement: identify forward‑looking, goal‑relevant questions; ensure visible board presence at events (not necessarily all members at every session); and make a transparent, lasting record of conversations. He suggested experimenting with small virtual conversations tied to existing events to increase participation.
Board members thanked Breedlove and asked staff to publish the compiled report in BoardDocs. The board directed its community relations committee to discuss cadence and format for engagement in the 2026–27 year and to keep records of these conversations for future reference.
The consultant also urged the board to show evidence of progress on its strategic goals in future reports to build community confidence.
