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December 3- Board Special Meeting Audit Commmittee
Two important audit reports were presented to the School Board Audit Committee on December 3. One assessed the school counseling function in SPS and found opportunities to improve student outcomes through better understanding and support of the school counselor role, especially in high schools.
Another report assessed the District’s implementation of the Multi-Tiered System of Supports (MTSS) and found that there is a strong need for more consistent implementation of this critical structure for addressing students’ academic and social-emotional needs. Both are linked here.
District staff will be presenting progress reports to the Board on reading and math at the board meeting Wednesday. These reports update the board on progress toward the strategic plan goals for students in these areas, including why or why not the District is on track to meet the goals.
December 11- Special Work Session Summary
- The School Board held a special work session on December 11 to finalize goals for student outcomes in SPS for the next five years (2025-2030).
- The School Board undertook extensive community consultation earlier this year to identify the community’s vision for what graduates of SPS should know and be able to do.
- That vision informed the two goals identified on 12/11 by the School Board: a strong start (early literacy), and a strong finish to ensure SPS graduates are prepared for the future of their choice (“life ready” high school pathways).
- Each goal includes metrics identifying how SPS will improve in these two areas from a 2025 baseline to 2030.
- Now that the School Board has finalized these goals, the work moves to the Superintendent, who is responsible for drafting a Strategic Plan to identify how SPS will achieve the metrics and reach the goals.
- More information from the work session is available here. The session recording can be viewed here.
December 18- Regular Monthly Board Meeting
- The board received reports from the Superintendent regarding the District’s progress on its goals for early literacy and middle school mathematics.
- Accepted an audit report from Moss Adams regarding ongoing barriers to the Board’s efforts since 2021 to implement a best-practice governance model (student outcomes-focused governance). Auditors provided specific recommendations for a successful transition to policy governance, which can be found in the report (linked in the meeting agenda).
- Director Liza Rankin’s one-year term as Board president came to a close, and Director Gina Topp (District 6) was elected Board President for 2025. Director Evan Briggs (District 3) takes on the Board vice president role for 2025 from Director Michele Sarju (District 5).
- The Board passed a budget resolution directing the Superintendent to present a plan for balancing the District’s budget that is aligned with the Strategic Plan’s goals for student outcomes, and to create and work with a task force or advisory group to develop a multi-year budget forecast for the District. (Resolution is also linked in the meeting agenda.)
- The District’s HR director was required to read a Notice of Unfair Labor Practices into the minutes of the meeting (regarding adjudicated labor violations at Rainier View Elementary school). (The notice is also linked in the meeting agenda.)