District 196 presents 2025 Minnesota Student Survey: improved well‑being, but tech use and disparities worry board

At the May 11, 2026 meeting of the Rosemount‑Apple Valley‑Eagan School Board, district staff presented results from the 2025 Minnesota Student Survey showing measurable improvements in student well‑being alongside continuing concerns about technology use and unequal outcomes across student groups.

The presentation, led by Director of Instruction and Achievement Rachel Hughes and research coordinator Steven Bellamp, emphasized high participation in District 196 and positive trends statewide. Bellamp said the statewide findings show "overall improvement in student health, well‑being, and general school experience," and highlighted district participation that remains "significantly higher than state averages." He told the board that two‑thirds of high‑school students reported feeling good about their future and that about 90% of students said they care about doing well in school.

Why it matters: district leaders said the survey gives a representative snapshot of students’ experiences that can guide school improvement and resource allocation. High response rates in District 196—particularly an eighth‑grade cohort response above 90%—make the local results actionable for building teams and district planners.

Key findings and details

- Participation and representativeness: district staff said District 196 participation is well above the statewide rate (the state participation rate had dropped to about 45%). The district reported strong engagement across grades measured (5th, 8th and 11th cohorts). (Presentation by Steven Bellamp.)

- Positive trends: roughly two‑thirds of high‑school students said they "almost always" or "often" feel good about their future; about 90% reported caring about doing well in school; and roughly 70–75% said they feel valued and find schoolwork useful. (Steven Bellamp and Rachel Hughes summarized these slides.)

- Technology and sleep: staff flagged technology use as a growing risk. About half of students reported using technology at least once on a school night between midnight and 5:00 a.m., and about 25% reported doing so three or more nights per week. Presenters linked late‑night screen use to disrupted sleep and recommended family and school conversations about regulation and digital citizenship. (Presentation and commentary by Stephanie Oaki.)

- Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) and mental‑health access: presenters noted that 37% of students statewide reported one or more ACEs; in the district, 20–35% of students reported receiving mental‑health treatment, and staff pointed to school‑based counseling and telehealth as growing access points.

Board questions and concerns

Board members pressed for methodological clarity and next steps. Robin asked whether the charts track the same cohort longitudinally or are cross‑sectional year‑to‑year; Bellamp clarified that some analyses are cohort‑based while the district also examines cross‑sectional grade results. Robin also asked whether the district can correlate late‑night technology use with academic testing, and staff said the new question will be monitored but cautioned that correlation does not imply causation.

Several board members urged the administration to move from description to action. Leah and others asked how the district will share digital‑use findings with families and whether schools can provide practical tools and digital‑citizenship programming. Staff pointed to existing digital‑citizenship curricula at elementary and secondary levels and recommended building‑level follow‑up and family outreach.

Equity and missing measures

Board member Anna raised concerns that the survey does not surface certain forms of racial and ethnic trauma or microaggressions and urged exploration of measures that capture that experience. Anna said the absence of those specific measures can undercount experiences that affect mental health and belonging. Katherine and other board members asked whether the district should set internal goals informed by the MSS data and recommended a focused board workshop to examine disparities, goal‑setting and program effectiveness.

Next steps

Administrators said building‑level data will be made available so principals and site teams can incorporate findings into school improvement plans. The board agreed that a special session or workshop would be appropriate to translate the survey results into measurable district goals and targeted interventions, especially around technology use, mental‑health access, and group disparities. No formal board action was taken on the survey presentation at the meeting.

The district has posted the full Minnesota Student Survey materials and referenced Minnesota Department of Health and Education resources for deeper analysis; staff will return with follow‑up materials and possible recommendations for board discussion.