Students share input regarding district goals

By Brian Sanders

Every year, members of the Jackson Heights USD 335 Board of Education review and update a list of the district’s goals and priorities for both the near and the not-so-near future.

But this year, there is one group of people whose comments could have some effects on those goals and priorities — the students themselves.

During the board’s regular meeting on Monday, District Superintendent and Elementary Principal Adrianne Walsh told board members that schools across the state are looking to “get some more student ownership and buy-in with things” — a concept that many districts have made part of their school improvement process.

Walsh presented board members with a list of comments and suggestions gleaned from a recent meeting with Jackson Heights High School students so that their input could be included in updating the list of goals and priorities. Board members were also asked for input on the list, which will be brought back at the board’s October meeting for further discussion.

The meeting between Walsh and a group of two class officers from each high school grade level — eight students in all — resulted in some “good input” from the students, she said.

“They asked lots of good questions,” Walsh told the board. “It’s something I would definitely do again. We need to hear from the students.”

Student concerns mainly focused on curriculum and technology, with Walsh noting that while students appreciate the training they get in the latter category, they would like to see both categories merging more often. One such suggestion, she said, was the implementation of a web design class.

College preparatory courses such as chemistry and physics were appreciated by the students, she said, but they also noted that some classes offered in the past should continue to be offered at some point in the future. One case in point was a government class offered through Highland Community College, while another was a Spanish IV class that was not offered for 2016-17.

“Some of them expressed disappointment that we’re not offering that this year,” Walsh said of Spanish IV. “They think we really should stress how important it is to have Spanish on your resume.”

Classes that prepare students for life after high school and college were also appreciated by the students, she said. One such class is senior English, which reportedly involves student participation in “mock interviews” and resume-building.

“They like the idea of employability skills being taught,” Walsh said.

Another class that students would like to see expanded is the government and social studies course, which was recently expanded to include a “current events” curriculum. Walsh said students involved in the course “felt like they could be more in touch with state and world events” and wanted the curriculum to continue.

Students were also receptive to the idea of locker and weight room remodeling, but board members noted that they would like to see a family and consumer sciences (FACS) position restated — part of the “short-range priorities” list for some time, it was noted.

“If we’ve got money for the lockers, we should have money for the FACS program,” board member Kelly Kennedy said.

In other business on Monday, Walsh shared test scores from the 2016 Kansas state math and English language arts (ELA) assessments, noting that the majority of students are scoring in the middle of the scoring range. In both math and ELA, students scoring in the middle — Levels 2 and 3 on a four-level grading range, with Level 1 being the lowest — made up 70 percent or more of those taking the tests, it was noted.

However, Walsh said the number of students scoring at Level 1 on either test — 17.5 percent of students in math and 18.5 percent of students in ELA — is “higher than I want it to be.”

“I agree with the philosophy of not teaching to the test, and I’m glad the state is saying that,” she said. “But we’re not getting any help or instruction on what we need to teach some of these kids.”

Out of 200 students being tested in grades three through eight and in the sophomore class, 35 students (17.5 percent) scored at Level 1, 87 students (43.5 percent) scored at Level 2, 56 students (28 percent) scored at Level 3 and 22 students (11 percent) scored at Level 4 in math.

In the ELA test, 37 students (18.5 percent) scored at Level 1, 75 students (37.5 percent) scored at Level 2, 65 students (32.5 percent) scored at Level 3 and 23 students (11.5 percent) scored at Level 4.

The board also:

* Approved the meeting’s agenda and consent agenda, the latter including minutes from the board’s Aug. 15 meeting and monthly bills and activity account reports.

* Approved a request from FFA advisor Paul Lierz to take two district vehicles with two advisors and 14 FFA students to the national FFA convention, to be held Oct. 18-22 in Indianapolis, Ind. The district will cover transportation costs while the high school’s FFA chapter will cover all other costs, board members noted.

* Approved a bond and lease refunding resolution.

* Approved a series of updates and changes to Kansas Association of School Boards-recommended policies involving security and safety, emergency safety interventions, staff-student relations, weapons, health screenings and concealed observations.

* Heard a report from Walsh on Kansas State Department of Education-related activities at the state level, including pilot programs targeting kindergarten readiness and college algebra preparedness.

* Noted the nomination of fourth-grade teacher Breanne Latham for 2016 Kansas Region 2 Teacher of the Year.

* Heard the elementary school report from Walsh, including aimsWeb Plus assessment testing, water bottles for elementary students as provided by the school’s Parent-Teacher Organization, the fifth and sixth-grade Student Council and various classroom activities.

* Met in executive session with Walsh for 20 minutes to discuss non-elected personnel matters.

* Accepted the resignation of Elaine Stephenson as head cook.

* Offered contracts to Toby Cowdin as assistant high school boys basketball coach and Elizabeth Cobb as part-time activities custodian.

* Adjourned the meeting at approximately 8:30 p.m.