Bearcat Wrap-up Podcast - Week 25: Insights from Our Climate Survey

Episode Date: February 20, 2025

Happy Friday on a Thursday!Thank you all for your hard work and adaptability this week, particularly as we navigated the unexpected school closure due to winter weather. It certainly has been an unusual week, especially with the upcoming long weekend. Given the shortened week, our performance target data has not seen significant changes. It is reassuring to know that we still have two additional built-in days remaining on our calendar to accommodate any future weather-related closings, should they become necessary. Let us hope we do not have to use any more of those days or have disrupted weeks like this one for the rest of the school year.In this week’s Wrap-up, I would like to share with you the results of our recent climate survey, which will serve as our needs assessment. This information is essential for guiding the development of our school improvement plan. Below, you will find detailed insights from the survey along with links to graphs illustrating the data.District Climate Survey ResultsThe recent district-wide climate survey provided valuable insights from students, parents, staff, and community members, revealing areas of strength and opportunities for improvement across our campuses. Overall satisfaction with the district remains robust, with approximately 85% of respondents indicating a positive perception of the district’s overall climate. High levels of satisfaction were also noted in key categories such as safety (over 90% agreement among respondents), teacher support and engagement (approximately 88%), and the quality of school facilities (around 80%). Additionally, academic support was highly rated, with roughly 92% of staff affirming that students receive the necessary academic assistance to succeed.However, the survey also identified two critical areas requiring attention: bullying prevention and communication. Bullying emerged as a significant concern district-wide, with many students reporting witnessing bullying and feeling that staff interventions could be improved. There was notable disagreement between teachers and students regarding how effectively bullying is being addressed. Teachers generally felt confident in their response to bullying incidents, while many students expressed that interventions were inconsistent or ineffective. Possible reasons for this disagreement include differing perceptions of what constitutes effective intervention, potential gaps in students reporting incidents to staff, and perhaps a lack of visible follow-up on reported incidents. As district leadership, we recognize the importance of exploring these differences in perception further to ensure that our approach to bullying prevention and intervention is effective and responsive to the needs of all stakeholders.Communication was another area highlighted for improvement across the district, particularly concerning transparency from school leadership and consistent, effective communication with parents and staff. While we can always improve communication and will actively work to enhance it, we must also acknowledge the importance of maintaining privacy and confidentiality, especially regarding sensitive information such as student academic records and personnel matters. It is vital that every individual in our school community can trust that their personal information will remain protected and private. We commit to striking a balance between transparent, timely communication and safeguarding the privacy rights of our students, families, and staff.This comprehensive feedback will be instrumental in shaping our upcoming district improvement plan and informing policy strategies in the months ahead. By addressing these critical areas, we aim to further strengthen our district’s culture, creating a safer, more inclusive, and transparent environment for all members of our school community.A total of 1,544 students, teachers, parents, and community members responded to 13 separate surveys distributed district-wide. The bar graph results for each survey may be seen in this linked Google Folder.ACCESS Arkansas ActThe bills to create the Arkansas ACCESS Act were introduced this week in the 2025 Regular Session as House Bill 1512 and Senate Bill 246, primarily focusing on enhancing postsecondary education within the state. Notably, the Act includes provisions that impact K-12 education, aiming to create a more seamless transition for students advancing to higher education. These provisions may involve curriculum alignment, early college credit opportunities, or collaborative programs between K-12 schools and postsecondary institutions. For a comprehensive understanding of the bills’ content and their implications for both postsecondary and K-12 education, you can access the full text of both bills in the links.ClosingThis week, we have proudly celebrated National FFA Week, recognizing the incredible contributions of our Mena FFA members and advisors. The FFA organization is instrumental in preparing our students for leadership, personal growth, and career success in agriculture and beyond. We honor their dedication, enthusiasm, and the positive impact they make in our schools and community. Thank you to everyone involved in FFA for embodying the spirit of service and excellence.Congratulations to our Bearcat Basketball team on their impressive victory in the first round of the district tournament! Their hard work and determination have not only secured them a spot in the semifinals but also earned them a well-deserved berth in the upcoming conference tournament. We are incredibly proud of their accomplishment and look forward to supporting them as they continue to compete. Additionally, we are excited to host the men's 5A South Regional Wrestling Tournament this Saturday. We extend our heartfelt thanks to all the coaches and volunteers whose efforts have made this event possible. Best of luck to all our wrestlers—go out there and make us proud!It was a cold, short, but good week of learning at Mena Public Schools.At Mena Public Schools our students are prepared, our staff is supported, and our community is confident.Keep the #menareads posts and videos coming and have a nice long weekend! This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit bearcatwrap.substack.com

Good afternoon and welcome to the week 25 wrap up. Insights from our climate survey identifying what we do well and where we can grow to inform our ongoing improvement strategies. Happy Friday on a Thursday. Thank you for all your hard work and adaptability this week, particularly as we navigated the unexpected school closure due to winter weather. It certainly has been an unusual week, especially with the upcoming long weekend. Given the shortened week, our performance target data has not seen

significant changes. It is reassuring to know that we still have two additional built-in days remaining on our calendar to accommodate any future weather related closings should they become necessary. Let us hope that we do not have to use any more of those days or have disrupted weeks like this one for the rest of the school year. In this week's wrap-up I would like to share with you the results of our recent climate survey which will serve as our needs assessment. This information is essential for guiding the development of our recent climate survey which will serve as our needs assessment. This information is essential for guiding the development of our school improvement plan. Below you will find a detailed a set of detailed insights from

the survey along with links to graphs illustrating the data. District climate survey results. The recent district-wide climate survey provided valuable insights from students, parents, staff, and community members revealing areas of strength and opportunities for improvement across our campuses. Overall satisfaction with the district remains robust with approximately 85% of respondents indicating a positive perception of the district's overall climate. High levels of satisfaction were

also noted in key categories such as safety, with over 90% agreement among respondents, teacher support and engagement, approximately 88%, and the quality of school facilities, around 80%. Additionally, academic support was highly rated with roughly 92% of staff affirming that students received the necessary academic assistance to succeed. However, the survey also identified two critical areas requiring attention. Bullying prevention and communication. Bullying emerged as a significant concern district-wide, with many students reporting witnessing bullying and feeling the staff interventions could be approved.

There was notable disagreement between teachers and students regarding how effectively bullying is being addressed. Teachers generally felt confident in their response to bullying incidents, while many students expressed that interventions were inconsistent or ineffective. Possible reasons for this disagreement include differing perceptions of what constitutes effective intervention, potential gaps in student reporting incidents to staff, and perhaps a lack of visible follow-up on reported incidents. As district leadership, we recognize the importance of exploring these differences in perception further, differences in perception further to enhance, ensure that our approach to

bullying prevention and intervention is effective and responsive to the needs of all stakeholders. Communication was another area highlighted for improvement across the district, particularly concerning transparency from school leadership and consistent effective communication with parents and staff. While we can always improve communication and will actively work to enhance it, we must also acknowledge the importance of maintaining privacy and confidentiality, especially regarding sensitive information such as student academic records and personnel matters. It's vital that every individual in our school community can trust that their personal information

will remain protected and private. We commit to striking a balance between transparent, timely communication and safeguarding the privacy rights of our students, families, and staff. This comprehensive feedback will be instrumental in shaping our upcoming district improvement plan and informing policy strategies in the months ahead. By addressing these critical areas we aim to further strengthen our district's culture, creating a safer, more inclusive, and transparent environment for all members of our school community. A total of 1,544 students, teachers, parents, and community members responded to 13 separate

surveys distributed district-wide. The bar graph results for each survey may be seen in the linked Google folder. Access Arkansas Act. The bills to create the Arkansas Access Act were introduced this week in the 2025 regular session as House Bill 1512 and Senate Bill 246, primarily focused focusing on enhancing post-secondary education within the state. enhancing post-secondary education within the state. Notably, the act includes provisions that impact K-12 education, aiming to create a more seamless transition for students advancing to higher education. These provisions may involve curriculum alignment, early college credit opportunities, or collaborative programs between K-12 schools and post-secondary institutions.

For comprehensive understanding of the bills, content, and their implications for both post-secondary and K-12 education, you can access the full text of both bills and the links provided in the text. In closing, this week we have proudly celebrated National FFA Week, recognizing the incredible contributions of our MENA FFA members and advisors. The FFA organization is instrumental in preparing our students for leadership, personal growth, and career success in agriculture and beyond. We honor their dedication, enthusiasm, and the positive impact they make in our schools and community. Thank you to everyone involved in FFA for embodying the spirit of service and excellence.

Congratulations to our Bearcat basketball team on their impressive victory in the first round of the district tournament. Their hard work and dedication have not only secured them a spot in the semifinals, but also earned them a well-deserved birth in the upcoming conference tournament. We are incredibly proud of their accomplishment and look forward to supporting them as they continue to compete. Additionally, we are excited to host the Men's 5A South Regional Wrestling Tournament this Saturday. We extend a heartfelt thanks to all the coaches and volunteers whose efforts have made this event possible. Best of luck to all of our wrestlers. Go out there and make us proud. It was a cold, short, but good week of learning at Mena Public Schools. At Mena Public Schools our students are prepared, our

staff is supported, and our community is confident. Keep the Mena Reads posts and videos coming and have a nice long weekend.