USD 308 Board hears KESA accreditation update, OKs major curriculum and technology purchases

MARC JACOBS
Hutch Post

USD 308 Board hears KESA accreditation update, OKs major curriculum and technology purchases

The USD 308 Board of Education received an update Monday night on the district’s Kansas Education Systems Accreditation (KESA) work, with Dr. Krystal Young crediting Director of Curriculum Lisa Yantes for leading the effort and reporting the district met its six-month and one-year strategic plan goals.

Yantes told the board KESA is now a yearly process and that USD 308 is in year two of the state’s newer accreditation model. She said the district remains in compliance with required measures and has been implementing its action plan tied to math and English language arts outcomes, graduation rate and postsecondary success. Yantes said the state has set a graduation-rate standard, but is still finalizing assessment and postsecondary metrics expected this spring; USD 308 will submit its updated plan by March 16, with accreditation feedback anticipated in early April.

Yantes also noted collaboration with “like systems” assigned by the state—Pittsburg, Kansas City Turner and Leavenworth—helped districts compare challenges, strategies and data trends, including academics and staffing.

In other business, the board approved several purchases and agreements, including:

1. 1,100 replacement Chromebooks for grades 7–12 to replace devices older than five years.
2. A five-year Pepsi agreement (through June 30, 2030) covering athletics/concessions, excluding food service and student-led organizations.
3. 145 Clear Touch interactive display panels to replace out-of-support classroom panels purchased in 2018, completing the secondary phase of replacements.
4. A new K–12 math curriculum adoption recommended by a teacher task force, totaling $1.208 million, featuring McGraw Hill’s Reveal Math with associated intervention and personalized learning components.

The board also received updates on a bond survey process, upcoming no-school dates (Feb. 20 and Feb. 23), and a planned ribbon cutting for the Little Hawks Child Care Center on April 3 at 11:30 a.m.

The next meeting of the USD 308 Board of Education is scheduled for Feb. 23.