Sept. 12, 2024

The Teaching and Learning Board Advisory Committee met on Sept. 10 for the first time this year to hear introductions from members and updates from the district.

Chief Academic Officer Dr. Tara Sparks headed the meeting and divided members into four group rotations to hear from district administrators about the following topics: curriculum, middle school standards-based learning, field trips/farmer’s club updates, and task force updates. Each group rotation featured a PowerPoint presentation on the topic at hand.

For the curriculum rotation, Executive Director of Elementary Education Dr. Craig Hamby discussed the district’s six-year curriculum cycle. Administrators and staff update curriculum at least every six years for all subjects. He said that curriculum will sometimes be updated before it reaches six years, as that is how fast it changes on a local and national level.

STEM Programs Coordinator Doug Barton led the field trips and farmer’s club presentation. The district has been working on including universal field trips for all students in grades K-8. He also discussed the process of making sure every grade level from K-12 is involved with the recently purchased Farmer’s Club property.

Executive Director of Secondary Education Dr. Jaimie Cavato discussed the upcoming revamp to standards-based learning at each middle school. Report cards are in the process of being updated for standards-based learning for grades six and seven.

Dr. Sparks led a discussion on task force updates. She said that the district has been learning about microschools that allow students to learn subjects with the intent of their college major. For example, a student that potentially wants to become a biology major to get into the medical field, may be able to learn all of their subjects in high school in a setting geared toward medical professionals. Additionally, Dr. Sparks gave updates on gifted learning for LHS students. 

The next meeting is scheduled for October 22.