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6
LM Month 2019
Blankenship
...
cont’d.
In a few short years, Scott-
Morgan CUSD #2 transitioned
from a district that lagged behind
technology to a 21st century
learning environment.
“We have flooded our school with
technology,” Kuhlmann says.
Aligning
Curriculum
and Improving
Assessment Scores
Outdated textbooks and a curriculum that wasn’t aligned
across grade levels was another focus for Blankenship.
Under his leadership, Scott-Morgan CUSD #2 updated
textbooks and curriculum and created a multi-year plan
where teachers worked collaboratively to design new math,
reading and ELA curricula.
“We provided a stable, consistent, core curriculum to all
students, which allowed our teachers and students to grow
personally and professionally both in school and out,”
Blankenship says.
Improving scores on local, state and national assessments,
especially at the high school level, was another priority for
Blankenship. When he was hired, the average ACT score in
Scott-Morgan CUSD #2 was below 16. Over the course of
five years, scores increased 25 percent to an average of 20.
In addition to technology enhancements and having
an aligned curriculum, Blankenship credits the jump in
assessment scores to transitioning the district toward a
professional and student growth model of teacher and
principal evaluation.
Teachers in Scott-Morgan CUSD #2 are regularly evaluated
and encouraged to reflect on their evaluations and develop
individual professional development plans based on
the feedback. The district also increased the amount of
collaboration time teachers have to learn and grow with
each other.
Professional development, however, is never a finished
product in Scott-Morgan CUSD #2. Beginning this school
year, the district’s leadership team plans to focus more on
studying individual student growth versus whole classroom
growth to better understand how each student is performing
and to develop learning plans tailored toward each student.
“Our district fostered countless hours of professional
development that was provided by experts in the field and
made the commitment to our staff to make the needed
changes,” Blankenship says.
Passed Two
Referendums
Also during his time as
superintendent at Scott-
Morgan CUSD #2, the
district passed a property tax
referendum to increase local
funding. The increase in local
revenue allowed the district to
avoid eliminating positions or
reducing programs at a time
when pro-ration in general
state aid forced many school
districts to cut costs.