Maintenance and custodial staff at Sequim School District will see a 9 percent increase in their salaries this school year.
Sequim School Board directors, with director Brandino Gibson and Heather Short excused, unanimously approved a new 2018-2019 contract agreement between the district and the United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) union representing maintenance and custodial staff employees of the district on Monday, Oct. 15.
A tentative contract agreement has been made with the Teamsters union representing district bus drivers, and with Sequim Association of paraeducators. Secretaries and exempt administrative employees remain in contract negotiations, school district officials said.
State testing scores
Assistant Superintendent Jennifer Maughan discussed the district’s state testing results at the Monday meeting, with scores from tests during the 2017-2018 school year up generally in English-language arts as well as science, and some scores up in math.
More than 50 percent of students in grades 3-10 met the state standard in English-language arts, with test scores generally up in that subject area, according to the Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction.
In math, more than half of students in grades 3-5 and seventh grade met the general assessment standard, while less than 50 percent of students in sixth-, eighth- and 10th grades met the general assessment standard.
Students must meet the standard assessment in English-language arts (ELA) and math to graduate from high school.
A portion of students in fifth-, eighth, and 11th grades last year also tested for the Washington Comprehensive Assessment of Science, with more than 50 percent of students meeting the standard.
Maughan and Sequim High School principal Shawn Langston said the state moved the Smarter Balanced testing standards, which includes English-language arts and math, from 11th-grade to 10-grade last year, and this could be a reason why less students this year met the math standard.
“Last year (the state) moved the SBA from 11th back to 10th grade,” Maughan said. “The new test came out last year so this is the first time we’ve got new results back.”
Langston said the state testing now for 10th-graders is at the Algebra II level; most sophomore have not learned that material by the time they take the test, he said.
“That’s part of the problem is most of our kids haven’t accessed that by their sophomore year,” Langston said.
“We have about 50 kids in our high school who are seniors who haven’t met state graduation requirement in math assessment,” he said.
“We have a plan for all of our ELA kids and math kids that have not met the state graduation requirement.”
Langston said the high school offers a “bridge to college” class as part of the core 24 curriculum that allows students to meet the state graduation requirement by passing the class but students will continue to take the SBA.
“They will still retake the SBA, but they will have met their graduation requirement by passing that class,” he said.
Maughan said the state moved back the test to 10th grade so students have more of an opportunity to take the test before they graduate.
Superintendent goals, more
The school board met before the board meeting on Oct. 1 and on Monday to discuss goals for superintendent Gary Neal, with board members approving the goals at the Monday meeting.
The board reviewed the six areas of the strategic plan goals, which include: 1. fiscal, 2. technology, 3. safety and security, 4. teaching and learning, 5. information and communication, and 6. connection and resources.
School board directors also approved writing a letter of support measures on the Nov. 6 general election ballot to expand the Sequim Library.
Safety meeting set
A School Safety Forum is set for 5-7 p.m. on Wednesday, Oct. 17, at the Sequim High School Auditorium, at 533 N. Sequim Ave., in partnership with the City of Sequim, Clallam County Fire District 3, Sequim Police Department and Clallam County Sheriff’s Office to address prevention, response, and recovery during a community crisis or natural disaster.
