McDowell Mountain principal outlines safety hires, curriculum alignment and family outreach

Kevin Wilkinson, principal of McDowell Mountain Elementary, told the Fountain Hills Unified School District Governing Board that the school has focused the past year on safety, curriculum consistency and restoring family engagement.

Wilkinson said the campus hired a security guard, Vince Fernandez, who performs perimeter checks, monitors cameras and visits classrooms to check on students and staff. "I could not have asked for a better applicant than Mister Fernandez. He is amazing with the kids," Wilkinson said. The school also added a behavior specialist, Carol Rodriguez, to support students with behavior needs and to coach teachers on de‑escalation techniques.

On academics, Wilkinson said the school is finalizing adoption of a new math curriculum after a committee vetted three options; sample materials will be on display in the district office for 60 days before the committee issues a formal recommendation to the governing board. He explained the district aims to align reading and math materials across grade levels and to strengthen professional learning communities (PLCs) so teachers meet weekly to discuss instruction and student needs.

Wilkinson outlined additional interventions: a reinstituted Student Support Team (SST) to coordinate interventions, reading buddies that pair older and younger students, and a PBIS (Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports) store where students spend earned "Falcon Feathers." He said walkie‑talkies are now in every classroom and TVs linked to camera feeds were installed in the front office to improve situational awareness.

The principal also described communication efforts: a weekly "Falcon Focus" newsletter for families and daily front‑office messages to staff. He and Nicole Latona, dean of students, said the school has restarted community events — including a Falcon Fiesta and math nights — to bring families back into the building after pandemic interruptions.

Wilkinson noted McDowell Mountain will receive an Arizona Department of Education school grade next year when third through fifth grades take AASA tests, and he said consistent curriculum and teacher collaboration are priorities to prepare students. He closed by saying the school is working on K–5 team building and scheduling to support grade‑level collaboration and teacher retention.

The board asked for the presentation slides to be shared with members; the superintendent and principal agreed to send them for the board packet.

The presentation was descriptive and did not include a request for immediate board action; staff will return with any items requiring formal approval.