For the fifth consecutive year, West St. Paul-Mendota Heights-Eagan Area Schools (District 197) contracted with Decision Resources, Ltd. (DRL), a Minneapolis-based survey and market research firm, to conduct its annual community survey of District 197 residents. In addition to providing the School Board and administrators with valuable community feedback, many items in the survey are used as part of the district’s scorecard measurements for continuous improvement.
Some highlights from the 2013 resident survey include:
- 88 percent of residents feel the community receives a good value for its investment in its public schools. This is an increase of two percentage points from last year’s survey and an approval rating that is among the highest in the metropolitan area, according to DRL.
- 60 percent of residents feel the district uses financial resources efficiently and effectively. This is up from 53 percent in 2012.
- 85 percent of residents trust the School Board to do what’s right for students.
- 88 percent of residents feel District 197 provides a safe and secure school environment for students.
- When asked what they like most about District 197, respondents most often cited teachers (27 percent) and good academics (19 percent). Thirty three percent said lack of funding was the most serious issue facing the district.
Dr. William Morris of DRL presented the findings of the survey at the Sept. 9 School Board meeting saying that the school district, in many areas, has favorability ratings that are among the highest in the Twin Cities metropolitan area.
“Overall, residents are indicating they're proud of the district,” Morris said. “We detect no issues where they have major differences … the job of the school board, superintendent and administration, principals and teachers are viewed very, very highly--remarkably strong in comparison to other districts.”
Morris went on to say, “… the district is in excellent shape. It's much stronger than it was a year ago, which as a statistician is an amazing change. The only major concern that people have tends to focus on any threats to student achievement, any threats to the excellent quality of education that you are already providing.”
Given the rising role of technology in enhancing curriculum and instruction, a portion of the survey focused on the community’s general perception of the use of technology within education. According to DRL, the results of this year’s survey indicate that District 197 is among the strongest pro-technology areas in Minnesota. Ninety percent consider the ability to use computers and other technologies for student learning as either “absolutely essential” or “very important.”
Current School District technology opportunities available for students are also viewed very positively. Eighty-four percent rate the current opportunities as either “excellent” or “good;” only seven percent rate them lower, while nine percent are “uncertain.”
For the past few years the district has been considering options to expand its Early Learning (birth to age 5) programs. In fact, last spring a committee of administrators, teachers and parents made several recommendations to the School Board, such as aligning the district’s pre-K through grade three curriculum, that would strengthen programming and increase student achievement. The committee also recommended establishing dedicated, age-appropriate space within the district for Early Learning programs, which is currently being studied by a Facilities Task Force.
In an effort to gage the community’s general views on early learning, the district worked with Decision Resources to include questions regarding Early Learning on this year’s survey. When asked about the importance of early learning programming 79 percent of respondents rated them as “very important” or “essential”.
A question on this year’s survey also offered insight into the district’s interest in developing more opportunities for students to earn college credits while in high school. Henry Sibley currently offers several college-level programs such as Post-Secondary Enrollment Options (PSEO), Advanced Placement (AP), College in the Schools (CIS) and Project Lead the Way (engineering). During the 2012-13 school year, a district committee explored options that would further expand these opportunities for students and even establish a relationship with Inver Hills Community College.
When asked generally for their opinion regarding the expansion of college credit-earning offerings at the high school, 81 percent of residents responded that they “support” or “strongly support” it.
Following Dr. Morris' presentation School Board Chair Mark Spurr commented, "I am really pleased that we have the strong, positive perception of the community, but to me the lesson is that we need to keep earning it. Next [year], I'd like to see even better numbers. We need to keep building on our strengths."
The multi-lingual community survey was conducted April 5-20, 2013 through telephone interviews with 400 randomly selected district households.
Watch Dr. Morris’ full report to the School Board online at https://vimeo.com/74249108.
