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Public Review Committee presents quadrennial report as SSD leaders map strategic, data and approval timeline
Summary
At an SSD Board meeting, the Public Review Committee presented its quadrennial recommendations on finances, governance, communication, personnel, CTE and equity; the superintendent and staff described how those recommendations will feed into the district's strategic and CSIP planning and a timeline targeting board approval by February and governing council approval in March.
The Special School District (SSD) Board of Education received the Public Review Committee's quadrennial report and a fourth-quarter update on the district's five-year strategic and CSIP plans.
Larry Felton, co-chair of the Public Review Committee, presented the committee's summary and recommendations, saying the PRC conducted seven meetings to review nine topic areas and published its report on June 8. Felton said the PRC focused on finances, governance and advocacy, communications (including the role of case managers), personnel measures and metrics, career and technical education and post-secondary alignment, equity definition and practice, partnership agreements, and continuous improvement methods. "We literally try to do continuous improvement," Felton said as he outlined the committee's rationale and supporting documentation.
The board asked for implementation clarity. Dr. Macklin and Lori Feldman said the leadership team will analyze PRC recommendations, assign responsible parties and due dates, and bring action plans forward as opportunities arise. A board member suggested returning those action plans to the governing council for feedback; staff said they would explore that step.
Dr. Molly Bolton, presenting the strategic and CSIP fourth-quarter update, described work on district data systems and governance: SSD has held formal meetings with 11 of 22 partner districts, is onboarding three districts with a fourth pending board approval, and is finalizing a data-governance rubric and Jira-based help-desk to manage requests. Bolton said the district is close to completing the architecture of a shared data warehouse and will develop rollout and training materials for partner districts and SSD schools.
Bolton also walked through CCIP and curriculum-linked work: the Charting the Life Course framework rollout will include elementary training and a community of practice; curriculum review cycles remain on a four-year cycle for SSD special education schools and a five-year cycle for career and technical schools; and literacy and dyslexia plans were revised to meet DESE guidance. She emphasized a timeline that includes focus groups in September'October and a draft plan in November, with an expectation to present a final strategic and CSIP plan to the Board of Education by February and to the Governing Council by March for final approval.
Board members pressed for timing on a workflow audit tied to data accuracy and case management. Bolton said the audit is rolling out now and staff plan to report impacts after the first quarter; Dr. Macklin added leadership will divide recommendations into action items and due dates.
Why it matters: The PRC's recommendations and the strategic/CSIP timelines shape SSD's program priorities, resource allocation and partner-district collaborations. The data governance steps and planned training aim to improve how student needs, staffing and resource allocation are matched across special education and partner districts.
The board did not take separate formal action on the PRC report at this meeting; staff committed to return with action plans and implementation timelines as they are developed.
