Snoqualmie Valley leaders outline plans to lift test scores, attendance and internships

Snoqualmie Valley School District leaders on May 21 told the district board they are focused on modest, measurable gains next year — a 3 percentage‑point growth target on the Smarter Balanced Assessment, stepped-up multi‑tiered supports and expanded student internships.

At the meeting, Mount Si High School presenters described three priorities: close ELA achievement gaps for categorical subgroups, increase math proficiency by 3 percentage points on the SBA and boost students’ sense of belonging through extracurricular and leadership pathways. “We expanded that to our 10th graders this year,” Mount Si staff member Miss Yost said of SBA preparation for students who had not yet taken the test. She said about 55 tenth graders participated in targeted SBA prep this spring.

The presentations emphasized layered supports. Mount Si leaders said they used SVEA funds to add an ELA interventionist who pushes into classrooms, increased teacher collaboration time and implemented academic and social‑emotional screeners. The team reported a roughly 3 percentage‑point increase in regular attendance and said 70% of students report feeling strongly or mostly connected to the school; presenters said they will track that baseline year to year.

Two Rivers highlighted a strong internship program as central to student engagement. Two Rivers staff reported partnering with 19 new valley businesses and logging more than 4,100 internship hours this year. “We had 97% out to date,” a Two Rivers presenter said of student internship participation, and the school set an early goal to increase internship participation from about 40% to 80% by the end of October for a targeted cohort.

Meadowbrook’s plan echoed the districtwide emphasis on Tier 1 instruction and MTSS (multi‑tiered systems of support). Meadowbrook presenters cited gains on STAR math and reading screeners (for example, K‑5 students scoring at the highest level rose from about 30% to 47% at midyear). The presentation also noted the district’s Edgenuity recognition and that Meadowbrook’s online program currently supports 145 students.

Board members asked about the origin of the 3% growth target; presenters said the figure aligns with state indicators used to mark high‑growth campuses and is considered a challenging but realistic bar. The presenters also flagged that Meadowbrook’s projected enrollment for next year is up roughly 15% for in‑person kindergarten, and said the in‑person Meadowbrook increases include families moving from private school, homeschooling or new entrants to the district.

The board approved routine consent items at the meeting, including four gifts totaling $9,824 to support athletics, field trips and music programs. The district will continue monitoring SBA results after testing the week following the meeting and expects to use the new screeners and MTSS processes to identify intervention needs earlier in students’ progression.

What’s next: the district will compare year‑over‑year survey and assessment data to the new baselines and report progress to the board; the next regular board meeting is scheduled for June 4.