Clover Park School District May 2024 Board Review

Twiggs, Gonzalez Cruz and Warrick selected as CPSD Employees of the Year

Three Clover Park School District (CPSD) employees were honored as Employees of the Year during a ceremony at Clover Park High School prior to the May 13 school board meeting.

Since 1987, CPSD has honored exemplary employees in three categories: certificated, classified and administrative. Award recipients are chosen by an independent panel of Lakewood citizens.

2024 Employees of the Year are:

• Certificated: Julie Twiggs (second from right above), fourth/fifth grade teacher, Carter Lake Elementary School
• Classified: Claudia Gonzalez Cruz (second from left above), paraeducator, Custer Elementary School
• Administrative: Sheri Warrick (center above), principal, Idlewild Elementary School

May 13 Regular Meeting

During its May 13 meeting, the CPSD Board of Directors heard a report from Superintendent Ron Banner.

Superintendent’s Report

In his report, Banner discussed CPSD’s 2024 Employees of the Year, student achievement and community engagement.

• Banner recognized the district’s three employees of the year who were announced and honored at a ceremony prior to the board meeting.
• Lakes High School senior Lola Pasco was awarded a four-year Naval JROTC scholarship and will attend The Citadel.
• Lakes senior Wyatt Blanchard earned an appointment to West Point Academy and will attend the service academy next year.
• Lakes senior Siddhartha Dylan Pant was one of five Washington students to be selected as a U.S. Presidential Scholar, earning his award in the field of Career and Technical Education.
• CPSD hosted local community leaders and elected officials recently for a tour of the district’s newest school, Gravelly Lake K-12 Academy.

As part of the Individual Action Agenda, the Board of Directors:

• Approved purchase and use of new world language instructional materials for grades 6-12. The materials will be purchased utilizing funds from a grant awarded to the district by the Department of Defense Education Activity in 2023.
• Authorized project to resurface and restripe eight of the Clover Park High School tennis courts. The project will also incorporate striping for four pickleball courts.
• Adopted the following policies (view online):
  • 3220, Freedom of Expression
  • 3231, Student Records
  • 3232, Parent and Student Rights in Administration of Surveys, Analysis or Evaluations
  • Restraint, Isolation and Other Uses of Reasonable Force

The next regular meeting of the school board will be Monday, June 10, at 6 p.m.

May 28 Regular Meeting/Workshop

The school board held a regular meeting/workshop on May 28. During the workshop, board members heard updates on the development of the 2024-25 school year budget, the district’s Academic Improvement Committee and the textbook adoption process.

Budget Update for 2024-25

Assistant Superintendent of Business Services and Capital Projects Greg Hart presented on development of the district’s 2024-25 school year budget. He reviewed the current general fund balance over the course of the year, provided a comparison of revenue and expenditures over the last two years, and discussed the debt service, associated student body, transportation and capital projects funds.

Hart also compared budget and actual enrollment in CPSD during the 2023-24 school year so far. Enrollment is a primary driver of district funding and is expected to drop by nearly 100 students in the 2024-25 school year.

Additionally, Hart provided an overview of the proposed 2024-25 school year budget. This overview included the projected general fund balance, preliminary revenues and details on how the budget is assembled.

Hart will present on the budget again at the June 17 school board planning meeting/workshop. The school board is slated to adopt the budget at its July 8 meeting.

Academic Improvement Committee Quarterly Report

Deputy Superintendent Brian Laubach provided a fourth quarter report on the district’s Academic Improvement Committee (AIC). They monitored the implementation of the district’s strategic plan during the first half of the school year.

In the second half of the year, members of the AIC met in small subcommittees to take a deeper dive into the strategic plan. They looked closely at the three goals identified by the strategic plan, which include preparing students for college and career readiness, increasing engagement and communication with students and families, and creating a culture of supportive learning environments for students and staff.

Findings from the AIC will help the district finalize its professional development plan for the coming year. An updated version of the district’s accountability plan will be reviewed at a board workshop this summer.

Textbook Adoption Process

Teaching and Learning Director Suzy Kontos and College and Career Readiness Director Tim Stults led a presentation on the district’s textbook adoption process. CPSD has a rolling textbook adoption calendar where core materials are reviewed and identified for adoption at least every 8 to 10 years.

Two textbook adoptions are currently under review for the 2024-25 school year: elementary mathematics and Career and Technical Education Core Plus business and marketing.

Kontos reviewed the process for selecting, piloting and adopting any textbook. The process takes two years before a curriculum is fully adopted by the district and approved by the school board.

Adoptions require committee reviews, bias reviews, community and board reviews, and full piloting in select classrooms. The school board votes to approve the new curriculum materials before the district implements them.

The board will hold a planning meeting/workshop on Monday, June 17, at 5:30 p.m.