Clover Park School District announcement.
January 9 Regular Meeting
During its Jan. 9 board meeting, the Clover Park School District (CPSD) Board of Directors heard reports from Superintendent Ron Banner and Lake Louise Elementary School Principal Travis Holmgren.
Superintendent’s Report
In his report, Banner discussed student achievement, staff recognition and student engagement.
Student Achievement
- The district’s Open Doors Youth Reengagement Program hosted its winter Awarding of Diplomas Ceremony on Jan. 20 at the McGavick Center on the Clover Park Technical College campus. Thirty-two students received their diplomas from Open Doors this winter.
Staff Recognition
- Lochburn Middle School science teacher Yasmine Shakoor Asadi was awarded the Middle School Science Teacher of the Year award by the Washington Science Teachers Association. She has taught at Lochburn since 2017.
Student Engagement
- The district partnered with Lakewood Steilacoom Young Life to host The Break event for secondary students in December.
- The Break is designed to provide opportunities for engagement and connection to students and reduce experiences of isolation and loneliness during the first few days of winter break.
- More than 700 CPSD students participated in The Break this year. Students participated in an array of activities and heard motivational speakers discuss business, entrepreneurship and mental health.
Lake Louise Elementary School
Lakes Louise Elementary School Principal Travis Holmgren shared a report with the board, which included discussion of the school’s demographics, assessment scores, family engagement and approach to equity.
Holmgren reviewed assessment data for all grade levels at the school, and detailed the steps the school is taking to help curtail the learning loss incurred during COVID-19 by using formative data to guide instruction, helping increase student comfort taking standardized tests and building stronger relationships with parents.
Students were assessed at the beginning of the school year this year to gauge a starting point for their proficiency in math and English Language Arts. Staff are looking forward to combining that data with upcoming spring assessments to evaluate student growth and progress toward meeting School Performance Plan goals.
As part of the Individual Action Agenda, the Board of Directors:
- Authorized agreement for project management services between the district and OAC and Hainline for multiple capital projects.
- Approved contracting for student transportation with First Student for district transportation services.
- Declared support for SB 5071, which creates a Purple Star designation for school districts, and pursuit of Purple Star designation by CPSD if the legislation passes.
- Adopted the following policies (view online):
- 1220 on Board Officers and Duties of Board Members
- 1225 on School Director Legislative Program
- 1610 on Conflicts of Interest 1st Class Districts
- 2409 on World Language Mastery-Based Credit
- 3117 on Students In or Released from an Institutional Education Facility
Jan. 5 Special Meeting
The school board held a special meeting/workshop on Jan. 5. The meeting was called to order and the board immediately went into executive session to discuss legal matters.
Jan. 23 and 24 Planning Meeting
The school board held planning meetings on Jan. 23 and Jan. 24. It heard reports on a variety of topics: Multi-Tiered System of Supports, human trafficking, the Clean Buildings Act, secondary student needs after COVID-19, graduation requirements and the district’s academic improvement committee.
Multi-Tiered System of Supports
Teaching and Learning Director Suzy Kontos presented on the district’s work on the Multi-Tiered System of Supports (MTSS) framework. MTSS is one of three district initiatives to support student achievement and provides the framework for schoolwide data analysis, resources and support.
MTSS allows teachers and administrators to match student needs with resources and interventions they need to thrive and set an actionable framework for schoolwide behavioral expectations of adults and students at each school.
Human Trafficking Update
Deputy Superintendent Brian Laubach provided an update on human trafficking prevention and instruction. It is essential for young people to be educated on human trafficking so they can spot the signs to keep themselves and others safe.
High school students receive instruction on human trafficking through health science courses and outside presenters from community organizations. The district is taking additional steps to ensure students have exposure to information on human trafficking at all levels, including a collaboration with Joint Base Lewis-McChord.
Clean Buildings Act
Executive Director of Capital Projects and Risk Management John Boatman discussed the Clean Buildings Act, which was signed into law by the Washington State Legislature in 2019. The intention of the law is to make buildings in the state more energy efficient.
Each building in the district must be retrofitted with energy efficiency upgrades, such as new HVAC systems or LED lighting, to be compliant with the law. Lakes High School is the first building that must be updated with a compliance date of June 1, 2026.
Secondary Student Needs After COVID-19
Consultant Josh Chambers provided an update on survey results gathered last spring through a partnership between the district and the city of Lakewood on youth wellness. Results of the survey have been used to implement programs in CPSD schools to help support student well-being.
Youth Wellness Modules were implemented at Hudtloff Middle School and Lakes High School in the fall. The intention of the modules was to provide an opportunity for peer-to-peer support and the chance to share and discuss important topics about wellness. The Youth Wellness Modules are being expanded to additional secondary schools in CPSD.
The collaboration has also led to training on social emotional learning and student mental health for teachers and additional projects for students at Lakes and Clover Park high schools.
Graduation Requirements
Assistant Superintendent for Secondary Schools Dr. Gloria Henderson presented about graduation in CPSD. The district graduation rate for the class of 2022 (87.5%) is more than five points higher than the state average (82.3%).
The state of Washington offers three broader options students can engage with to achieve graduation: career and college readiness in ELA and math, career and technical education, and the military. This gives each student a set of graduation pathway options that best align with their post-high school goals.
The district provides a wide array of resources and supports to help students achieve their goal of graduation. This includes access to alternative programs such as the Open Doors Youth Reengagement Program and the ability to work with career counselors, receive intervention services and more.
Academic Improvement Committee Report
Laubach provided an update on the progress of the district’s academic improvement committee during the 2022-23 school year. The committee was designed for the common goal of messaging, advising and ensuring that all district initiatives are in alignment with the board accountability plan and the district improvement plan.
Laubach highlighted the areas the committee has been focused on during the school year and ways the committee has engaged with each of those areas. The committee is working on the development of a new five-year academic improvement plan with a targeted completion of June.
Board Procedures and Reviews
The board discussed and reviewed a variety of board-related actions, including: reviewing its vision, mission, beliefs and values; annual review of its goals and objectives; discussing the policy manual review process, school board reports the school annual action plan review timeline and the school board meeting and report schedule.
The board also convened executive session for its evaluation of the superintendent.
The next regular meeting/workshop of the school board will be Monday, Feb. 27, at 5:30 p.m.
So it now takes over a month for CPSD to publish minutes of a Board meeting on 9 January 2023. Quite irrelevant and receding into the past yet having an impact long after the fact on those who live in the District. The public lost the opportunity to discuss issues from 9 January 2023 at the next Board meeting on 13 February 2023 because the minutes had not been published. Indeed the next opportunity to discuss issues from the 9 January 2023 meeting in public comment won’t be until the 13 March 2023 Board regular meeting over two months later! So much for “community engagement”.
I would laugh at the following quote if it wasn’t so pathetic:
“Assistant Superintendent for Secondary Schools Dr. Gloria Henderson presented about graduation in CPSD. The district graduation rate for the class of 2022 (87.5%) is more than five points higher than the state average (82.3%).”
Totally bogus figures designed to deceive! Nothing but District propaganda! Have you checked the OSPI statistics of the District or individual high schools? Read it and weep! Figures for ELA, Math, Science are percentage of students meeting MINIMUM OSPI academic standards.
https://washingtonstatereportcard.ospi.k12.wa.us/ReportCard/ViewSchoolOrDistrict/100047
Clover Park School District:
87% graduation rate
60% attendance
ELA: 39%
Math: 25%
Science: 30%
Clover Park High School
84% graduation rate
42% attendance (!)
ELA: 38%
Math: 8% (!)
Science: 16% (!)
The Clover Park High School statistics are especially damning. How is it possible with these attendance and academic scores that the District can claim an 87.5% graduation rate or CPHS a 84% graduation rate? Who is it exactly we are graduating? Has not CPSD become nothing more than a diploma mill for many of its students? What dire consequences are our graduating students encountering in a world for which they are unprepared to succeed without obtaining a basic education?
Anyone can watch the meetings live or see them after the fact. Whether they are published in the Suburban Times is a non issue
Graduation rates do not solely reflect test scores. Test scores are just one aspect of measuring student academic achievement and are not representative of the whole student. I refer you to the statement in the article:
“The state of Washington offers three broader options students can engage with to achieve graduation: career and college readiness in ELA and math, career and technical education, and the military. This gives each student a set of graduation pathway options that best align with their post-high school goals.” Test scores are used as one of many tools to guide students toward graduation and post graduation goals. The focus solely on one tool such as test score data to equate it to graduation rates is a flawed measurement of outcomes.
These are oft repeated excuses for not using objective standards such as test scores to determine academic proficiency. If test scores weren’t important why would OSPI include them on their report card website? So if test score aren’t the only measure of academic achievement then please state what “other” objective measures are used to determine the following:
“…career and college readiness in ELA and math, career and technical education, and the military.”
How about those objective measures of whatever is the “whole student”? How about defining “whole student” first?
The OSPI’s own statistics on ELA, math and science tell the story about preparedness for career, technical education and military: the majority of students are not prepared!
Stop with the excuses. To solve a problem you first have to admit there is a problem.
First off, the audio of regular meetings is still horrible, a year after it was supposed to be fixed. It’s almost impossible to clearly understand what’s being said. Not everyone has 3 hours to sit and watch Board meetings held during the dinner hours for most people.
The minutes are supposed to be a concise record of what happened during these meetings which can be read at the public’s convenience. Make things more difficult than they need to be and they won’t get done. You might want to look at Policy 1440, “Minutes” which states:
“Unofficial minutes WILL BE provided to board members IN ADVANCE of the next regularly scheduled meeting of the board and WILL ALSO BE AVAILABLE to other interested citizens. ”
Yet another Board violation of its own policy.
Stop making excuses!
News from the real world:
So I have 2 late model vehicles, a one-ton Ram pickup truck 2018 and a Jeep Wrangler 2021.
The jeep has had its motor, transmission, and complete exhaust system replaced.
The Ram has been deadlined twice for major warranty repair, and is now in the shop for complete engine replacement to the tune of around $30,000. Thank God I bought the extended warranty.
My friends have had similar experience with other domestic manufacturers that have been unionized to death.
Moral of the story:
Clearly domestic manufacturing excellence is out the window, but I suspect that these companies have stellar HR departments with a solid emphasis on diversity, equity, and inclusion.
Bottom line:
Success starts with realistic merit-based training at a young age, with standards that can actually lead to individual competency.
There’s a lot of political talk about moving manufacturing back into this country from over seas.
Really? Exactly who do you suppose is going to do all that work.
Maybe the millions of illegal immigrants pouring across our borders will give it a shot while our kids play video games in the basement and/or pursue a college degree – useless, except for government employment?
Maybe in public education administration?
Letting children fail up is a very lazy and destructive precedent to set for our future.
Here’s a simple “test” for those who think tests aren’t that important.
Clover Park High School:
Graduation: 84%
ELA: 38%
Math: 8% (!)
Science: 16% (!)
Bainbridge High School:
Graduation: 94% (+10%)
ELA 89% (+51%)
Math 66% (+58%)
Science 38% (+22%)
Now the test question. Which of these two schools is better preparing their students for success after graduation? Yet there is only a 10% difference in graduation rates. Why? Because Bainbridge’s graduation rate reflects reality and Clover Park’s reflects fantasy.
See…test scores matter.
Apples to Oranges
Bainbridge Island School District contains 10 schools and 3,604 students. The district’s minority enrollment is 20%. Also, 3.8% of students are economically disadvantaged.
Clover Park School District contains 32 schools and 12,556 students. The district’s minority enrollment is 70%. Also, 50.0% of students are economically disadvantaged.
You missed the point entirely. We’re not talking about demographics. It’s about test scores regardless of why they are high or low in any set of school districts. The question remains: based upon test scores alone, which District does a better job of educating its students? Bainbridge Island or Clover Park? Granted Baainbridge may not have to deal with all the issues that Clover Park deals with (or uses as an excuse) but from the test scores alone which District would you send your children to if you had a choice. One that is ranked in the 99 percentile or the one in the 28 percentile?