Logan schools failure rates improve

Logan Municipal Schools saw a decline in its “alarming” numbers of middle and high-school students failing at least one class in remote-learning environments, reported the district’s superintendent.

Superintendent Dennis Roch said during the school board’s October meeting that 43% of middle-school students and 33% of high-schoolers were flunking at least one class during the semester. He said students in online learning environments weren’t completing their coursework on time because they were working or parents weren’t around to supervise.

Roch said during the board’s meeting last week the percentage of pupils failing at least one class fell to 35% in the middle school and 27% in the high school. He said six students in each school had improved enough to remove their failing grades at just-completed first nine weeks of the school year.

He said the district partnered with the Logan Police Department to conduct welfare checks at households where students were failing.

Roch also said the middle school added more live Zoom videoconferences to improve engagement and participation with students.

With more instructional adjustments coming, Roch said “I think we’ll see even better percentages than the end of the first nine weeks.”

While declaring Logan’s initial numbers of failing students as “alarming,” Roch said many districts in New Mexico are seeing as high as 70% of their students flunking at least one class in remote-learning environments.

He said a more-typical number of Logan students failing at least one course was in single-digit percentages.

The district has received “A” or “B” grades from the state’s Public Education Department in the 2017-2018 school year, the most recent data available. Logan also was designated a National Blue Ribbon School of Excellence last year.

In other business:

• Board members and Roch discussed the possibility of going to virtual instruction only for a week or so during the Thanksgiving or Christmas holidays and would revisit the issue during their December meeting.

Roch said school districts in Hobbs, Carlsbad, Roswell and Los Alamos have instituted one- or two-week periods of virtual instruction after Thanksgiving or Christmas because family gatherings for the holidays would increase the risk of COVID-19 spread.

Roch said he didn’t advocate or dismiss Logan adding remote classes after the holidays but wanted board members to know about the option.

Board members voiced their desire to keep elementary students in school as long as possible. However, Laurie Strebeck and Tom Humble said such an option seemed to be more relevant after Christmas.

• Roch recounted a draft of the New Mexico School Superintendents Association’s recommendations to the state for the upcoming legislative session.

One was keeping districts fiscally solvent by “holding harmless,” or stabilizing, state funding despite declines in student enrollment during the pandemic. The group recommended a three-year average of enrollment for budgeting, minus the 2020-2021 school year. Roch said the group also advocates protecting districts’ cash balances and preventing unfunded mandates.

It also recommended flexibility to meet educational needs, including letting districts decide their instructional calendars, determining competency for graduates and revise or delay Attendance for Success Act implementation.

The group also advocates recruiting quality educational personnel with an alternative early-retirement option, ensuring liability protections and waive pension penalties for retired employees who return to work.

• The board approved a second reading of a policy advisory regarding students’ eligibility for extracurricular activities.

Roch said the new policy through the Attendance for Success Act states not only must students maintain a 2.0 grade-point average or equivalent, but they cannot miss more than 15 days of any class during a semester.

Roch said the 15-days criteria might prove problematic for athletes who have to leave school at noon for distant road games. He said the district may have to adjust its scheduling, or students may have to finish coursework on the bus with their smartphones.

At least one board member suggested students be allowed to finish their coursework within 24 hours instead of the same day.

• The board authorized Roch to negotiate a deal and inquire about warranties regarding improvements to the parking lot at the football field.

Roch said he received a proposal from RBM Construction to blade and grade the parking lot, build two vehicle entrances, add a middle path for pedestrians, install a fence, lay a surface base and microseal it.

The cost would range from $47,000 to $52,800. Only about $39,000 is available from the state’s Local Government Road Fund that includes a 25% match from the district.

Though Roch said the lower estimate is about $8,000 more than the money available, he noted the surface in the proposal is higher quality and might be worth the extra cost. He said the work, which needs to be authorized by Dec. 31, would be done in two phases because winter weather conditions wouldn’t be ideal for resurfacing.

• Board members voted to dispose of an obsolete fryer from the district’s kitchen. Roch said repairs to the fryer would have cost $1,700, while a new unit would have cost $1,800. He said the fryer would be salvaged for scrap metal or taken to the dump.

• The board met in a closed executive session to discuss Roch’s evaluation. No action was taken when open session resumed.