NICK GOSNELL
Hutch Post
HUTCHINSON, Kan. — Hutchinson USD 308 is actively working to use the new KESA framework for accreditation.
"We just had our visit from KSDE," said Associate Superintendent Krystal Young. "We are preparing for our school improvement day, in which will travel with, Dr. Johnson, myself and eight other staff members to Lawrence for an opportunity to connect with three other school districts that are similar to us. This gives us an opportunity to really dig into our data look at what's going well maybe where some improvements are needed. What we're really excited about is that it's not adding one more thing, it's a direct connection to, what's our current data, what are the goals that we have for our district and then what's our strategic plan and then just moving forward with an action plan to make gains."
One of the most important pieces of data is the rate of growth for students.
"Eighty percent of our students made a year's growth," Young said. "That was something that we were really proud of. We know that we are working hard to help our students be successful and we also know that there is room for improvement. One of the things that we talked about a lot with the board was an action plan moving forward and our board is really open to just us being innovative and looking at maybe how to structure kindergarten differently."
Kindergarten readiness is also a measure that could use assistance from the child care offerings that are going to be available in the district in the coming years.
"We are hopeful that when the bond passes and we can put everybody in the same place that that will be an opportunity for us to connect more with our community," Young said. "We also know that that starts as early as birth and so the connection we have with parents as teachers the connection we have with daycares the home visits that our early education staff are doing, all of those things are pieces of the puzzle."
If USD 308 receives approval from the State Board of Education in January, a $109.5 million bond issue would be voted on April 1.