No Public Comment

KD MacDonald gave an introduction to her new role at MCCPS and prepared a presentation regarding the iReady data from Spring of 2025.

Purpose: Provide context on how our students are performing. We need to remember that our goal is not to only measure growth but equity across student data. 

Understand student performance

• FYI: i-ready is a nationally administered assessment that is designed to meet students where they are.
  • Test is administered 3x times a year (Fall, Winter, Spring)
  • i-Ready is aligned with MA state standards
  • 2x ways that i-ready measures growth
    • Typical: 1-year of expected progress
    • Stretch growth: More of an ambitious target for students who is falling below grade level.
      • 3-year window of growth needed and projected growth 
      • Provides us data to push students to how much they need to grow
• Math:
  • 60% of students are on or above grade level
    • 1/2 of students with disabilities and FEL are at or above grade level
  • MLL students are falling behind 28% of these students are on or above grade level
  • There is still a group of students are are below grade level
    • These students will be identified and will have extra support this coming school year
  • Growth this past school year
    • Typical: more than 1/2 students have met or exceeded their typical growth for the year
      • 1/4 students made very little progress
        • This will be a subgroup of students that teachers will look close at this group during this coming school year.
    • Stretch growth:
      • 28% of students with disabilities have met their stregth growth
      • MLL students are performing lower that most sub groups
  • Proficiency by domain:
    • 4th Grade: 
      • Measurement and Data was that highest performing domain 
      • Algebra & Algebraic thinking is a 4th grade teaching standard that needs to be improved on
        • This will be a target for the 25/26 SY
    • 5th Grade:
      • Measurement and Data was that highest performing domain 
        • This is a priority set of standards for Grade 5 (volume)
      • Majority of 5th grade standards is Numbers & Operations
        • This is a low group given the i-ready data.
        • This will be a target for the 25/26 SYPart II: Identify achievement and equity
    • 6th Grade:
      • Measurement and Data was that highest performing domain 
        • Not a primary domain for this grade level
      • Highest priority domain
        • Numbers & Operations
    • 7th Grade
      • Measurement and Data was that highest performing domain 
        • Not a primary domain for this grade level
      • Algebra & Algebraic Thinking should be the focus at this level
  • PALS Data:
    • Overall PALS showed good increase
      • 26% increase on/above grade level
      • 27% decrease below grade level
      • 21% decrease far below grade level
    • 36% increase with students with disabilities on/above grade level
    • MLL students made significant growth
      • 300% increase on/above grade level
• Reading
  • End of last year
    • 64% on/above grade level
    • 1/2 students with disabilities or FEL students are on or above grade leve
    • 14% of MLL on/above grade level
  • Typical growth
    • 1/2 of the school is meeting their growth
    • MLL students are struggling to make growth
      • This will be a focus for the 25/26 SY
  • Stretch Growth
    • 27% Students with disabilities or FEL are meeting this growth
    • MLL learns are not making significant grown 
      • This will be a focus for the 25/26 SY
  • 4th Grade
    • Students struggled with Phonics
      • This is a skill that should be mastered by the end of 3rd grade
    • High-Frequency words
      • there are still some students that are below grade level  - This is a skill that should be mastered at the end of 2nd Grade
  • 5th Grade
    • Similar finding that we saw with 4th grade
    • Comprehension domains scored low
      • HQIM will be a focus in this area this year
  • 6th Grade:
    • Phonics and High-Frequency words improved
    • We will lean of HQIM for the SY 25/26
  • 7th Grade
    • We see improvement on the Comprehension domains in i-ready
      • Lean on this teacher to share resources that made students so successful
  • 8th Grade
    • Work needed on planning literature with an appropriate amount of rigor
    • Grade level that could require HQIM
      • Need a scope and sequence that relate to MA Standards
• The longer that the students is enrolled at MCCPS we see improvement in getting students on/above grade level

Takeaways

• As a school we are clsing gaps
• MLL students are an area of focus
• Focus on equity of instruction
• Recommendations
  • Focus on stretch growth vs. Typical growth
  • Prioritize small group instruction

Lindsay wanted a space for feedback on the retreat was:

• Overall positive feedback
• Good focus for strategic growth for the board
• Case scenarios were useful

This will be an annual retreat

Takeaway:

• This year is a fresh start to build strong practices
• This is an area of focus that DESE wanted us to focus on

• School is fully staffed with 4x person team at each grade level
• 4th & 8th grades will have teachers acting as a classroom teacher and inclusion teacher
  • This is a model that we used last year and will continue to use at these two grade levels
• Enrollment is currently at 226
  • It is anticipated that we will reach 230 to reach max enrollment
  • Wait list in 5, 6 & 7
  • 66% to 57% students are from sending districts SY 25/26
    • This is expected to happen from our last renewal findings as we accept more students from non-sending districts
• Teachers returned to school today 8/26
  • PD has a focus on instructional shifts that will be made for SY 25/26
    • UDL
    • MTSS
    • Pals shifts with addition of ELA
• HIQM rolled out in Math & Science
• CSL to be rolled out to the entire school
• Continue with Parent Dinners starting 9/4

• Board officer votes will be upcoming

Positions:

• 2x year terms - Open positions
  • Chair
    • Lindsay mentioned that she would be interested
  • Vice Chair
    • Pending until next month

• This will be addressed one new board members are added.

There will be a presentation next month with the budget on the current enrollment

There has been a lot of activity:

• Chris Re was interviewed before the annual retreat
• Karen Kagan was interviewed before the annual retreat

There will be a next Governance Committee Meeting in the next two weeks

Meeting held in July:

• Goal: Are we meeting and reaching student bench marks
  • First data set can be seen in the presentation from today's' board meeting
• Next meeting September 24th

First meeting is scheduled for September 2025

N/A

We thanked Katie Holt for her service as the Chair of the Board