Carlsbad Unified trustees hear midyear LCAP update; staff point to elementary gains and subgroup gaps

Carlsbad Unified School District trustees received a detailed midyear Local Control Accountability Plan (LCAP) progress report during their Feb. 12 board meeting, with staff presenting assessment data, intervention results and next steps for closing subgroup gaps.

Dr NY (lead presenter) said the district uses 14 annual goals and success indicators to focus staff efforts and track progress. He highlighted two assessment strands: “lead” measures that predict outcomes and “lag” measures such as participation in AP, honors or community-college courses. He summarized winter-to-spring targets and said staff will post grade-level appendices online.

Presentation slides showed midyear STAR and MDTP results with notable elementary growth. Dr Brian Brockett, who reviewed high‑school MDTP findings, said most course areas showed growth and called MDTP “a diagnostic that gives us an ability to take a look at how our students are progressing over time.” Dr Michael Ecker and instructional leaders credited newly added MTSS teachers at elementary and middle schools with moving substantial fractions of intervention students into higher performance bands.

Staff emphasized work to address disproportionality in special education and other state-identified monitoring areas. Dr NY said the district is in year two of action plans aimed at Hispanic students with specific learning disabilities and African-American students with autism. He said the district has adopted multi-tiered supports, Universal Design for Learning strategies and expanded English language development supports for reclassification purposes.

Officials reported specific midyear figures: a 69.7% winter baseline in higher/typical growth bands for math (target 71% by year-end), a math proficiency winter snapshot of about 63% (baseline 59.8%), and a current rate of 84% for students having taken at least one honors, AP or community-college class across their K–12 career. Chronic absenteeism showed midyear improvement from 16% last year to 15.1% now, with a year-end target of 7.4%.

Trustees focused their questions on MDTP communication to parents, how the district is identifying and supporting students not meeting standards, anomalies in some MDTP administrations (Sage Creek trimester timing) and how site-level reports will be shared. Dr NY and staff said parents received MDTP score reports after the fall administration and that additional readiness reports and parent communications will be distributed; they also described site-level midyear reports principals will present to the board in February and an upcoming special board study session on next year’s goals in March.

Board members received assurances that intervention programs (Read 180, Math 180, targeted algebra intervention classes), MTSS staffing and new data visualization tools (including a pilot of Renaissance’s “EduClimber”) are being used to triangulate measures and track intervention impact.

Why it matters: staff said the targeted approach—focusing on lead measures and site-level MTSS work—aims to sustain early elementary gains, accelerate growth for students below standard and reduce subgroup disparities.

Votes at a glance

• Approval of agenda/reorganization (Item 4.1): motion moved by Trustee Ward, seconded by Trustee Emory; vote called by Miss Garcia — passed 5–0.

• Consent calendar approval: motion passed 5–0 (no items pulled).

• Three‑year technology plan (Item 7.2): motion moved, seconded; vote called by Miss Garcia — passed 5–0.

What’s next: staff will post grade-level appendices, continue site-level MTSS work and present a study session in March focused on adopting next year’s goals and success indicators. The board did not take formal action on the LCAP itself at this meeting.