By Erin M. Gentz
Interim Index Editor
The West Liberty School Board got a look at the district’s equity report during the June 17 meeting, as high school assistant principal and equity coordinator Andrew Genz presented data for the 2023-24 school year.
The demographic makeup of the district was 60.28 percent Hispanic and 38.94 percent white. Genz said special education enrollment was 66.94 percent male, and added that the district would be working with the AEA on a special education delivery plan and reviewing the program as an administrative team.
He reported a more balanced enrollment in the Talented and Gifted program. In the 2021-22 school year, enrollment was 64 percent white; in the last school year, it was 57 percent white. He also noted a lower number of students in a lower socio-economic status (SES). In 2021-22, 25 percent of students were designated low SES; that number dropped to 22 percent in the recently completed school year.
More students are participating in extra-curricular activities, with 304 students in extra-curriculars in 2023-24, up considerably from the 217 students in 2022-23. Genz applauded this news.
“As we all know, more involvement in activities (means) you’re more invested in your academics. So, that’s really great.”
He cited a larger freshman class and an increase in coaches and sponsors promoting their activities as reasons for the increase. He added that he would like to speak with students that are currently uninvolved in activities to see if programs could be added that appealed to their interests. The e-sports team was created in response to a similar conversation Genz had with students in prior years.
Genz said activities director Adam Loria would be preparing and presenting a more detailed report on student activities for a future board meeting.
Reviewing attendance data, Genz said a large discrepancy was in the demographics of students recording unexcused absences, with the majority of those students being Hispanic (75.4 percent at the junior high and 72.4 percent at the high school). He added that he is creating a database to compile information showing the importance of being in school and described the results as “a lot of great data” that he is excited to share soon.
Digging further into the data, Genz said he found that 70.1 percent of students receiving D or F grades were Hispanic. He said he was working to cross-reference failing grades with absenteeism, and find resources to help students in that category, whether through more parental assistance or outside organizations.
Genz also shared with the board that a new Future Educators program will start at the high school in the fall.
“That’s a new one for this upcoming year that I’m pretty excited about. It’s the opportunity for 11th and 12th grade students interested in the teaching profession to work with our elementary group to find of sit in and watch and get a feel for what a classroom is. It’s kind of like a field experience class to see if that’s something they want to go into. And that’s sponsored by a grant through the University of Iowa. Iowa will be doing a lot of facilitation with the students and talking with them, so I think that’s a great partnership for our future teachers and educators.”
Middle school update
West Liberty Middle School principal Vicki Vernon updated the board on the school’s goals for the 2023-24 school year.
Among the staff’s goals for the year were to create a building-level team to develop and support Multi-Tiered Systems of Support (MTSS). The team included staff members Monty Beal, Citlaly Fernandez, Kelsie Garcia, Tonya Gingerich, Russ Hughes, Nikki Koenig, Sarah Nott, Melody Russell and Vernon. The group created a mission statement: “We will empower all students to learn and grow using evidence/research-based schoolwide support and ongoing collaboration involving teachers, administrators, families, specialists and community partners.”
Vernon also discussed attendance monitoring, which was a districtwide goal as well. For the middle school, the average daily attendance was 94 percent of students in class. Vernon said 84 students had more than 10 absences, and of those, 13 students had more than 20 absences.
She went on to explain how MTSS can be implemented, using attendance as an example. The first level of intervention involves daily phone calls to parents of absent or tardy students. If phone calls did improve the situation, staff members would then send letters home to parents of chronically absent students, and those students would also receive academic support. In extreme situations, a family meeting could be scheduled, and staff might notify the Muscatine County Attorney’s Office of potential truancy situations. For the most chronically absent students, an alternate schedule could be proposed, or a referral to a therapist.
Reading proficiency increased at the middle school, according to standardized testing results for comprehension and fluency. Vernon also said students made “great growth” in their math comprehension skills.
Commenting on the sheer number of acronyms for standardized tests, board member Edward Moreno asked Vernon if parents knew what each test was measuring. “How can we as a district get this out to the community, this is what it looks like behind the curtain?”
“I totally agree,” said Vernon. “I’ve been trying to, at the beginning of the year before we take these tests, send out a little summary. I just kind of put it in layman’s terms. It’s like going to the doctor, and they’re talking to you in the medical terms. And you’re going, ‘Just tell me in layman’s terms.’ So, I’ve been trying to do that.”
“I will say that the communication before the tests are being taken is very helpful,” said board member Kira Achen. “Like, ‘Hey, just so you know, they’re going to be going though five days of testing. Sleep.’ Because, things get lax, you know. So, that’s all been very helpful.”
Vernon also praised a mentoring program between fifth and eighth graders. Guidance counselor Russ Hughes trained eighth graders who were chosen to be in the program.
Personnel
High school paraprofessional Manuela Duarte will retire, effective Nov. 26.
The board accepted the resignation of Ruben Galvan, assistant varsity girls’ soccer coach.
New hires included:
Christina Catherman, high school paraprofessional, at $16 per hour;
Virginia Harris, high school special education teacher, at $47,500;
Kadyn Staab, high school special education teacher, at $47,500
Charles Willier, bus driver, at $110 per day;
Rachel Watters, sixth- and seventh-grade world cultures teacher, at $47,500.