The district honored its 30 retirees at its annual Retirement Reception before the school board meeting on Monday, June 12. Superintendent Ron Banner and School Board Vice President Carole Jacobs were part of the ceremony to celebrate each retiree in attendance.
June 12 Regular Meeting
During its June 12 board meeting, the school board heard a report from Superintendent Ron Banner.
Superintendent’s Report
In his report, Banner discussed student achievement, staff celebration and policy review.
Student Achievement
- Clover Park and Lakes high schools, Harrison Preparatory School, and Open Doors all conducted graduation programs during the first week of June. The Alfaretta Transition Program held its annual promotion ceremony.
- Senior awards nights were held at each of the high schools within the two weeks prior to graduation.
Staff Celebration
- Despite staff shortages, the transportation department did not need to cancel any established routes to and from school. This includes 45 regular routes, 32 special education routes and five McKinney-Vento routes.
- CPSD transported 2,449 after school routes, 796 athletic trips and an additional 317 school day field trips.
- This is accomplished through the dedication of drivers, dispatchers, mechanics, supervisors and administrators who have stepped in to drive routes even when it is not their primary function.
- CPSD also contracted transportation services through charter agencies when needed.
Policy Review
- Banner informed the board that the Washington State School Directors’ Association (WSSDA) is currently reviewing the 3000-policy series.
- Once review has been completed, WSSDA will be in contact with districts on next steps.
As part of the Individual Action Agenda, the Board of Directors:
- Authorized purchase of Sonday System Reading resources to support early literacy and reading.
- Approved annual licensing and support contract renewal with Power School Unified for cloud-hosting services.
- Approved extension of Superintendent’s contract for an additional year, through June 30, 2026.
- Approved additional cost for contracting student transportation with A & A Transportation for district transportation services.
The next regular meeting of the school board will be Monday, July 10, at 6 p.m.
June 26 and 27 Planning Meetings
The school board held planning meetings on June 26 and June 27. It engaged in equity training and heard reports on a variety of topics, including the 2023-24 school year budget, supporting social emotional learning, the district’s Accountability Plan and the district’s Academic Improvement Committee.
Equity Training
The board began its planning meeting with equity training led by Jahmad Canley, president and CEO of Potential Unleashed Consulting. Canley discussed race and racism at individual and systemic levels. The board participated in small group activities to discuss the materials presented.
2023-24 Budget Update
Executive Director of Finance and Business Services Greg Hart provided an update on the 2023-24 school year budget development process. He discussed enrollment projections and trends, the beginning fund balance, revenues, expenditures and community input.
The district conducted a survey earlier this year to identify budget priorities for community members. In total, 243 community members participated in the survey and identified safety and security, smaller class sizes and classroom resources as budget priorities. Hart concluded his presentation with an example of how schools can be staffed differently based on need.
CPSD will host a public budget hearing on July 10, and the board will vote on a recommendation to adopt the budget at the July 10 regular meeting.
Supporting Social Emotional Learning
Director of Teaching and Learning Suzy Kontos provided an update on the implementation of social emotional learning (SEL) curriculum in CPSD. Kontos discussed student perception data regarding SEL and reviewed current distrit curriculum.
Student perception survey data helped identify seven areas of focus for SEL curriculum: future orientation, belonging and identity, self-management, perseverance/stamina, self-efficacy/mindset, critical thinking, and collaboration and interpersonal skills.
Research shows that SEL instruction leads to positive outcomes for students. Kontos concluded by reviewing SEL curriculum used in the district, each of which focus on the five CASEL standards: self-awareness, self-management, responsible decision-making, social awareness and relationship skills. CASEL is the industry standard for SEL instruction.
Accountability Plan Presentation
The superintendent and members of the superintendent’s council presented highlights for the district’s accountability plan, which outlines data associated with the district’s work toward achieving each board goal.
Goal #1: Student Growth/Student Achievement
Highlights were provided for student growth/student achievement, which focuses on reading, math and science growth, and attendance rates.
- Assessment scores for the 2022-23 school year have not yet been finalized.
Goal #2: Parent and Community Engagement
Highlights from the district’s work to support parent and community engagement includes the Parent Connection Council (PCC), Educational Effectiveness Survey, parent conferencing, Skyward usage, school messenger and community engagement.
- CPSD conducts an educational effectiveness survey annually. Staff and families continue to provide positive responses to questions posed by the survey.
- Parents continue to use the Family Access Portal of Skyward to complete district forms, enroll their students and check on attendance, grades and student meal card data.
- School Messenger is the district’s primary mode of messaging to families.
- The district continues to work on expanding and strengthening parent and community engagement. CPSD is focused on partnerships to support student voice and the Four Pillars of Student Success, which includes partnerships with Lakewood’s CHOICE, Lakewold Gardens, the city of Lakewood and more.
- The district launched the Facility Advisory Committee (FAC) to begin work on developing a long-term facilities plan for the district.
Goal #3: Communication with Stakeholders
Highlights from the school board’s communication with stakeholders includes social media engagement, interpretation and translation, and students exiting and entering the district.
- CPSD launched ThoughtExchange, which allows engagement with stakeholders in a new anonymous way. It has provided useful data for the budget development process and school needs.
- The number of interpreters requested continues to increase and percentage of languages requested also continues to increase. The district continues to identify new ways to use technology to help support the translation of documents and messages sent to families and the community.
- The number of students leaving and entering the district has remained the same from the previous year at both the K-5 and 6-12 grade levels.
Goal #4: Supportive Learning Environment for Students
Highlights for the district’s work to provide supportive learning environments for students includes attendance, results from the district’s Educational Effectiveness Survey and discipline.
- The number of students in CPSD with 18 or more excused/unexcused absences has decreased since the 2021-22 school year.
- Schools continue to employ SEL, PBIS, counseling services, family engagement and responses to student voice to support students in better decision-making.
Goal #5: Recruitment, Retention and Professional Development
Highlights were provided for the district’s recruitment, retention and professional development efforts, which included staff recognition, recruitment efforts, retention rates, teacher and administrator certification support, and staff survey data.
- CPSD continued to recognize staff through the years of service program, Educators of the Month with the Lakewood Rotary, employees of the year and using News Briefs and social media platforms to share with the community staff who are living the promise.
- The percent of staff exiting this year is 8.7%, which is better than the industry standard of 10%.
- The district has partnered with Pacific Lutheran University and City University to participate in the Alternate Routes to Certification Block Grant, which is intended to bring historically marginalized staff into the education profession.
- The percentage of staff of color in CPSD has increased from 17% to 21%, exceeding the statewide rate of 15%.
- Five administrative interns were part of the district’s 2022-23 cohort. All five completed the program and three were hired as administrators for the 2023-24 school year.
Goal #6: Fiscal Responsibility
Highlights from the district’s commitment to strong fiscal responsibility were provided, which included community input on budget development, electronic Impact Aid data collection, federal Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief (ESSER) funds, general fund balance and budget projections.
- CPSD has increased efforts to solicit public feedback during the development of the 2023-24 school year budget. The district held three community budget workshops and launched a community budget survey.
- CPSD changed the way it gathered Impact Aid data this year, using full electronic data collection. Families provided positive feedback about the change and the U.S. Department of Education passed the district with high marks in its review.
- CPSD received federal emergency relief funds to help offset the costs of the COVID-19 pandemic. Funds are used for student well-being, student learning recovery, health and safety, technology, and support services.
District Strategic Plan
Deputy Superintendent Brian Laubach provided an update on the district’s Academic Improvement Committee (AIC). The presentation included information on the process school staff will be expected to follow to contribute to improvement, the committee timeline, the profile of a CPSD graduate and an overview of the goals for the district’s new strategic plan.
The district’s new strategic plan will be focused on the following goals:
- Goal 1: Prepare all students for college and career readiness by increasing academic achievement and closing the gaps in achievement and college readiness.
- Goal 2: Increase engagement and communication with families to ensure equitable inclusion of all subgroups.
- Goal 3: Create a culture of supportive learning environments for students and staff.
School administrators have been provided the School Annual Action Plan template for 2023-24 and the new District Strategic Plan.
