BOARD BUZZ

Some thoughts for the starting school yearB

The purpose of this newsletter is to provide the PCSD Re-2 community with updates coming from the monthly Board of Education (BOE) meetings and additional Board work. BOE meetings are open to the public, either in-person or virtually, at 640 Hathaway Street, Fairplay, in the Board Room. Dates and times are posted on the PCSD Re-2 website, in the BOE Board Buzz and Superintendent Bulletin, in the local papers, and on social media for those interested in attending. For questions related to the BOE meetings, please reach out to becky.keeling@parkcountyre2.org.

Oct 14, 2024 Meeting Highlights

On October 14, the Park County School District Re-2's Board of Education held their monthly meeting. The following is a summary of the meeting's topics:

Superintendent Report

Dr. Harrison shared updates on celebrations, communication plans, and testing results. Community chatter about how great preschool is going under the new leadership of Mrs. Hermansen, the arrival of our new bus, the hiring of a new Middle School Counselor and Safety & Security Specialist, an energy-filled Homecoming Week and first ever Friday Night Lights football game, and incredible results of the ASVAB exam of our high school students were celebrated.

Dr. Harrison also shared the results of the parent and community survey around the District's website, summarizing that areas for suggested improvement include: more appealing presentation of current events with photos, provide comprehensive listings of all events, sports, field trips, and testing schedules, develop online payment options for school fees and updated cafeteria menus, create a dedicated page for student involvement and extracurricular activities, provide more frequent updates and organization of information to reduce clutter, and more. Overall, the feedback emphasized the importance of a more user-friendly and updated website to improve communication efforts. The District will use the feedback to work with their developer on new layouts and continuous improvement.

Finally, Dr. Harrison shared with the Board the results of additional Fall testing and its comparison to our Spring 2024 CMAS, PSAT, and SAT results. Overall, the data aligned with the patterns that the District saw in the Spring testing, and the collective data will be used to drive improvement planning.

Student Technology & Internet Safety Presentation

Superintendent Dr. Jistine Harrison, IT Director Jesse Mair, and Principal Kevin Sellers discussed Student Technology and Internet Safety, focusing on compliance with key legislation like the Student Data Transparency and Security Act, CIPA, and FERPA. Dr. Harrison emphasized the importance of safeguarding student data and highlighted gaps in current technology safety measures, suggesting a need to re-evaluate students' technology use, the resources used, and to consider re-establishing a Technology Advisory Committee for this work.

Mr. Mair outlined the dual nature of the school's network, differentiating between public and private access, and discussed the challenges of filtering inappropriate content. He noted that while the District is compliant with CIPA, concerns were raised about recent student access to blocked content. The new filtering software, Blocksi, aims to improve safety, but Mr. Mair acknowledged limitations in its effectiveness and monitoring capabilities.

Board members expressed interest in optimizing Blocksi’s functionalities and exploring a one-to-one Chromebook policy to enhance control over student devices. Dr. Harrison underscored the need for an updated Technology Plan Review, while suggesting improved training for staff on Blocksi's capabilities to ensure effective monitoring and management in classrooms.

Unified Improvement Plan Report

Superintendent Dr. Jistine Harrison collaborated with school principals and the District Accountability Committee to create the annual UIP for the Colorado Department of Education. Mr. Sellers and Dr. Harrison highlighted four Student Performance Priorities (SPR) that are the focus of this plan for this school year: increase academic growth in elementary English-Language Arts, increase secondary student engagement, increase students' and staff's feelings of mental and physical safety and belonging in school, and increase achievement on postsecondary and workforce readiness indicators. With root causes identified, some of the critical improvement strategies identified are: increase student, staff, and parent/guardian perceptions of culture and climate, increase student engagement opportunities, provide professional development in supporting teachers in classroom and behavioral management and engagement strategies, build understanding of value of academic participation in postsecondary planning, and provide professional development in data analysis and application. More information on the UIP will be provided in Dr. Harrison's Superintendent Bulletin next week.

District Accountability Committee (DAC) Report

Erin Ventura and Lori Slifka, co-leaders of the DAC Committee, outlined new procedures including term limits for members. Goals for the year include participation in budget planning, UIP development, and community outreach.

Event Information