LAS Board of Education Recap: School Improvement Plan

The Lowell Area Schools Board of Education met Monday evening for their regularly scheduled monthly meeting. All members were present.

Oath of Office and Election of Officers

The three incumbent board members and one new member who won November’s election took a ceremonial oath of office at the start of the meeting. Returning members Jessica Curtis, Laurie Kuna, Brian Krajewski and new member Annie McMahon Whitlock were sworn in.

The board also approved the election of officers: Krajewski will continue to serve as Board President, Kuna as Vice-President, Pat Nugent as Secretary, and Jennifer Dougherty will now serve as Board Treasurer.

Student Council Report

Student Council President Conner Casarez said that the high school was now “getting back into the swing of things” after winter break and preparing for upcoming AP exams.

On Saturday, February 1, the sophomore class is hosting the Snowball Dance with a theme of “A Night in Candyland.”

Consent Grouping

The board approved several annual organizational actions, including approval of minutes, payment of bills, and the approval of a new hire; Hannah Kinney, who will be a fifth grade teacher at Cherry Creek Elementary. Kinney, an LAS graduate, will begin her new role at the end of this month. Superintendent Nate Fowler said that her resume includes teaching experience all over the country, in Scotland and Australia, and a stint teaching on a sailboat for a summer.

School Board Recognition

As January is National School Board Recognition Month, Fowler read a statement to the board, which read, in part:

“Our board carefully balances the needs of students, teachers, staff and taxpayers while navigating complex educational policies, changing educational practices and changing technologies, all while balancing financial considerations.

In the past year, we saw an increase in our test scores and a decrease in failure rates. We saw attendance improve and enrollment stabilize and grow. We passed a bond to maintain and improve our facilities. We held negotiations with the teacher association. We had difficult conversations about controversial issues…whether it is supporting innovative programs or teaching methods, ensuring our curriculum meets high standards, or maintaining our facilities, our board members put the needs of students first…To each board member, we want you to know that your service makes a real difference. You help create the conditions that allow our teachers to teach, our students to learn, and our community to thrive. Your dedication to public education strengthens not just our schools, but our entire community.”

School Improvement Plan

Fowler and Director of Curriculum Dan VanderMeulen gave a report on the process the district uses to ensure continuous improvement at each building and at each grade level.

The procedure that the district currently uses is called the Michigan Integrated Continuous Improvement Process (MICIP). Fowler explained that MICIP is “…an ongoing work…a living document that Dan (VanderMeulen) monitors and supports for the district…it informs the way we work on a daily basis and develops systems to support implementation of that process…”.

MICIP focuses on a “whole-child approach,” which includes students’ physical and mental health, safety, engagement and support. The process uses a “multi-tiered system of support” to identify issues facing students.

  • Tier 1: Includes issues affecting all students
  • Tier 2: Includes about 15% of students who may need additional or different supports
  • Tier 3: Includes about 5% of students who are struggling and may need advanced interventions

The process is built upon by professional learning teams (PLTs) made up of educators at each building in the district and at every grade level. These teams focus on the ongoing school improvement goals at LAS, which are that:

  • All students will be proficient in reading as determined by local and state assessments
  • All students will be proficient in math as determined by local and state assessments
  • All students will report an overall positive state of belonging as reported by survey

Some of the many strategies LAS utilizes to work towards these goals include having math and reading intervention teams, K-12 district math and reading teams, mental health teams, mentors and assemblies that focus on positivity and aspects of mental health and belonging.

Action Items

The board voted on several items, including approving the purchase of two new school buses (one standard and one lift bus for students needing wheelchair accessibility) at a total cost of $308,765. They also approved an overnight stay for the gymnastics team in February and a budget amendment presented by chief financial officer Sonia Hodge.

Budget Amendment

The district’s budget is amended several times throughout the year to reflect changes such as updated state and federal funding and student population counts.

This January budget amendment includes budget assessment updates for revenue, including a projected enrollment total for the district of 3,468 students. This is a projection for the 2024-25 school year using last year’s data. This total is an increase in enrollment by 15 students from last year. The amendment also includes a projected total revenue for the district of $9,608 per student that LAS expects to receive from the state.

The amendment overall has an end of year fund balance of $9.4 million, or about 18%, which Hodge says is well within the 12-20% range that the Michigan School Business Officials (MSBO) recommends for all Michigan school districts.

Human Resources Update

Director of Human Resources Dustin Cichocki said that the district has hired and is currently training a new school bus driver. While they still need 1-2 more drivers and are actively recruiting, no routes have had to be cancelled as a result.

Budget Update

Hodge said that the recent Consensus Revenue Estimating Conference held by the state provided positive news. The district is expecting a 2.5% increase in revenue from the state for next year and the year after. She added that we won’t know for many months how exactly those funds will be dispersed to districts but said that the news is good overall. The governor’s budget will be released early next month, and then in late April, the House and Senate will release their budgets.

Curriculum Update

This week and next week, the grade level teams will meet to review math and reading data and for some collaborative problem solving for continued improvement.

Eighteen K-5 teachers have been piloting two new English/Language Arts programs and will need to make a decision soon about which one to choose for the district to use going forward. VanderMeulen said that he is hopeful a decision can be reached at a meeting with teachers later this week. Then, that decision could be brought before the board for discussion at their work session meeting later this month.

Public Comments

Stefanie Boone, an Ada resident whose children attend LAS through the Schools of Choice program, said that she wanted to be sure the board was aware of a recent federal judge’s rollback of the 2024 Title IX changes.

Title IX provides protections against sex-based harassment in federally-funded schools, and the 2024 changes to Title IX included expanded protections for LGBTQ students, pregnant students and students who are victims of sexual assault.

LAS did not yet adopt the 2024 policies and have been operating under the 2020 changes to Title IX, so no changes will need to be made in this district. Boone said she was glad that the changes would not be adopted to include discrimination based on gender, which she said “…is a made-up, social and cultural construct that is ever-evolving.”

Boone asked that with the plans for renovations at Cherry Creek Elementary, the district consider “all-gender, single-stall” bathrooms that would be “safe for everyone.”

Retired LAS teacher Kim Lum said that she recently saw Ruby Bridges on a news program speaking about the upcoming Martin Luther King, Jr. Day and remembered a time when, many years ago, Bridges paid a visit to Cherry Creek Elementary and spoke to fourth and fifth graders.

Lum read a quote from Bridges’s mother about Ruby: “Our Ruby taught us all a lot. She became someone who helped change our country. She was part of history…she led us away from hate, she led us nearer to knowing each other…”.

Lum said she wanted to remind everyone that, even in Lowell, “…there are lots of different people, all around us. And we, in Lowell, need to be welcoming to all of them…”.

Superintendent’s Report

Regarding the Title IX ruling, Fowler said that at this time, there is still some uncertainty about what effect the court decision might have on districts that did adopt the 2024 rules. He said that because LAS did not adopt the rules, the 2020 rules are still in place and nothing will change at this time.

He said that the final inspections have passed on the renovated bus wash, and said that, “…it was really cool to see dirty buses go in, and beautiful yellow buses come out.” Fowler added that he is hopeful that the new wash will extend the life of the district’s buses and reduce maintenance costs for LAS overall.

Fowler made mention of a recent surge in norovirus cases in the district and thanked custodial staff for their diligence in making sure surfaces and classrooms are cleaned and disinfected. He reminded everyone to utilize good handwashing practices to help prevent the spread of the virus.

Board Communications

Many board members welcomed new member Annie McMahon Whitlock to the board.

Whitlock thanked the board for welcoming her, said thank you to the community for their votes and support, and that she was excited to serve on the board.

The meeting was adjourned at 8:10 pm. The next meeting will be a work session for the board, which the public is welcome to attend on Monday, January 27 at 6 pm.

2 Comments

  1. I wonder if Kim Lum escaped from a memory care unit? Her readings are a waste of time as much as Sista Boone’s…

    • As a former teacher of the district I appreciate Kim Lum ‘s outlook! She is putting forward the goals and aspirations of the community.
      As i read lowellsfirstlook. Weekly I still feel Lowell is that type of community. School board minutes reports are well done. Keep up good work!

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