Gausman put together a number of ideas for the Lincoln Board of Education to consider on Tuesday as part of a year-end report the board asked the superintendent to compile in his first year at LPS.
Task forces examining five distinct areas — student behavior, early childhood education, staffing, focus programs and district initiatives — helped Gausman develop the report, which outlines practices already in place and proposed changes.
It will ultimately be up to the board to move forward with any of the recommendations, whether by sending them off to board committees, allocating funding in the budget or including them in the district's next five-year strategic plan expected to be drafted this summer.
The board tasked Gausman with drafting a preliminary transition report in November, in which the first-year superintendent put forward findings based on input from staff, parents, community members, local officials and others. He was then required to expand upon that report by recommending changes to the district's organizational structure, systems and programming.
One of the major focuses of the report addresses an issue that Gausman said he's heard throughout the district: student behavior.
"Without question, the No. 1 thing that staff members have been talking to me about in all of my interviews and surveys has been student behavior," Gausman said during a briefing with the Journal Star. "We're in a historic time of challenges with student behavior, not just because of the pandemic, but certainly that's a very large contributing factor."
In the report, Gausman and a student behavior task force recommend adding a second alternative high school placement program for students with behavioral needs who do not qualify for special education services offered at the Yankee Hill Education Center. The district already has a similar program at Lincoln Northeast High School.
Other recommendations include implementing an electronic hall pass system through students' Chromebooks at secondary schools and installing vape detection and mitigation technology using funding from a settlement agreement with the e-cigarette company Juul.
Gausman is also looking to rework the district's organizational structure and wants to create a fifth associate superintendent position focused on student behavior and student supports.
The new office for educational services would oversee a number of departments that currently fall under other associate superintendent offices, including student services, security and health services.
The associate superintendent for educational services would fall under the so-called "instructional division" of Gausman's executive team alongside the associate superintendent of instruction, which would be rebranded to the office of teaching and learning. The associate superintendent for general administration and governmental relations — the district's lobbyist — would be rebranded to the associate superintendent of civic engagement.
Meanwhile, the report recommends merging the district's curriculum and assessment wings into one department. Those changes would allow the proposed associate superintendent to add up to a half-time equivalent position, Gausman said.
There are currently four associate superintendents who form the superintendent's executive team, along with the chief technology officer, the director of equity, diversity and inclusion, the ESU 18 administrator and the director of communications.
Each of the four associate superintendents currently earn roughly $230,000 a year.
Gausman's report also highlights district practices that have recently been implemented or will soon, including creating a consistent districtwide policy by the fall requiring middle and high school students to turn in their cellphones before class.
"It's time for us to remove cellphones from the classroom," he said.
Reactions to the report from the school board were generally positive, with several applauding Gausman's work throughout his first year as superintendent of Lincoln Public Schools and in compiling the report.
"We were really looking for fresh eyes, and I really feel that you took that to heart," said Annie Mumgaard, one of the board members. "I think it shows a real strength of not only how we are built as LPS, but how you've come in and used that to help us."
Other task force recommendations include:
STAFFING
- Conduct "stay" interviews to determine how schools can retain staff.
- Examine pay schedules for certified staff in their 21-30 years of service to be more competitive with other districts.
- Develop partnerships with colleges and universities to support "grow your own" staffing initiatives. Hire a coordinator to create strategies for recruiting students and current staff members to become teachers.
EARLY CHILDHOOD
- Continue LPS' partnership with the Lincoln Littles Task Force, which supports children with disabilities in child care settings.
- Partner with Lincoln businesses to provide preschools on-site or near the site of the business.
- Hire an additional teacher-leader in the early childhood department to provide professional learning at community childhood centers.
FOCUS PROGRAMS
- Add a school counselor to serve the Bryan, Arts & Humanities and Science focus programs.
- Hire a site-based leader to serve three focus programs: Arts & Humanities, Science and Bay High.
- Develop a communications plan and recruiting events for all focus programs and streamline the recruiting process for prospective students.
NEXT STEPS
Gausman said all requests have to go through the usual board processes, including board committees and approval of the budget.
The district plans to meet with the Lincoln Education Association — the city's teacher's union — this summer about a number of staffing-related issues, especially with salary negotiations expected to begin in the fall.
The district is also expected to develop a five-year strategic plan — essentially a road map for the district's future — in the months ahead and hold community input sessions to gather feedback on a draft. Adjustments to the plan will then follow before implementation of the plan as early as the spring.
©2023 Lincoln Journal Star, Neb. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
