District presenters report early literacy gains, wider math challenges and gaps in progress-monitoring

District staff presented STAR assessment results and a scorecard update showing mixed outcomes: promising early-literacy growth in K–2, but lower projected proficiency rates in middle and high school math and an incomplete progress-monitoring system.

Speaker 4, presenting the STAR literacy data, said 66.1% of assessed students showed typical or better growth from fall to spring and noted kindergarten students showed the highest percentage of typical-or-better growth (80.4%). Across 665 students with measurable reading-growth data, about 60.2% exceeded expected growth; first- and second-grade cohorts showed stronger projected proficiency (84% and 77% projected to meet state benchmarks) while middle- and high-school cohorts projected lower proficiency rates (roughly 44–47%).

On math, presenters reported about 68.3% of students with measurable growth met or exceeded expected growth during the assessment period, and districtwide projected proficiency at or above the state benchmark rose to about 34% in spring (up from 30% in fall). Elementary grades showed the strongest projected proficiency; by contrast, high-school grades were much lower (9th grade about 14%, 10th grade about 11% projected to meet the benchmark).

Presenters and board members discussed causes and next steps. The presenters cautioned that this was the district's first year implementing the redesigned elementary literacy model and the STAR assessment system; they recommended viewing these results through a multi-year lens. Staff said cohort effects and pandemic-related disruptions likely contributed to weaker outcomes in older grades. The board and staff discussed assessment fatigue, the relationship between STAR results and classroom grades, and how assessment data will move with students year-to-year.

Speaker 6 flagged that "progress monitoring plans" remain red on the district scorecard because the system is not yet operational, and described plans to partner with Oregon RTI to build MTSS/RTI systems that will support individual progress-monitoring plans. Presenters outlined near-term actions including expanding instructional coaching, creating additional math sections to reduce secondary class sizes, and training staff on data integration so growth measures can inform instruction. They also noted that the district is printing and sending STAR reports to families to increase transparency.

Board members asked several clarifying questions about how STAR aligns with state benchmarks and how teachers should use different data sources; staff emphasized STAR is one component of a broader progress-monitoring plan and that additional systems work (data integration and training) is planned to support teachers' use of the data.

The meeting closed with thanks to presenters and brief administrative items about upcoming meetings.