Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the School Performance topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
McKinley principal reports lower suspensions, higher referrals and incremental test-score gains
Summary
McKinley Middle School principal B. Williams told the board suspension rates fell from 10.7% to 2.6% after alternative strategies; I-Ready and ELPAC supports showed spring growth, while chronic absenteeism and mental-health demand remain areas of focus.
Principal B. Williams presented McKinley Middle School’s 2024–25 data to the Redwood City School District Governing Board on April 2, describing recent gains and ongoing challenges.
Williams said the school’s California Dashboard showed red-designations in 2022–23 for multiple subgroups and that the leadership team prioritized culture, attendance and suspensions for improvement. She reported a drop in suspension rates from 10.7% last year to 2.6% this year after implementing alternatives to suspension and restorative supports. Williams described outreach (home visits, attendance raffles, bus passes) and student-facing incentives tied to attendance and extracurricular participation.
At the same time, mental-health referrals increased: Williams said total referrals rose from 79 last year to 162 across two semesters, and individual counseling sessions increased from 79 to 87. She characterized the rise as improved identification and earlier intervention rather than an overall decline in student well-being, and said the school is pursuing additional resources (including a foundation grant for $60,000 mentioned in board discussion).
On academics, Williams credited a block-testing schedule, schoolwide ownership of I-Ready administration and coaching support for measurable spring growth: she reported reductions in the percent of students in I-Ready “red” categories and increases in students meeting growth targets by grade (examples: sixth-grade green up 11%, seventh and eighth up 17%). Williams said writing across the curriculum, additional reading time, extended period lengths (planned increase from 47 to 55 minutes) and coaching cycles would be priorities for next year.
Several board members asked for more disaggregated data by grade and pressed whether the school has capacity to meet increased counseling demand. Williams said the district and a foundation are pursuing additional funding and that she has waiting lists for counselors. Trustees praised the school’s culture-building measures, the visibility of student voice in the presentation and the leadership team’s efforts.
The presentation concluded with trustees thanking the student speakers and staff; no board vote was required on the report.
