Mount Logan Middle School

Mt. Logan Middle Schools
Community Council Minutes
November 11, 2025
3:45-4:45

Minutes

• Minute approval
  • 1st- Julie Benson
  • 2nd- Haleigh Beecher
  • Minutes approved
  • Paul Flores added as member
• School Mission- 
  • Our mission is to ensure ALL students leave our school ready to create a positive future for themselves and their community.
  • A group of Teachers went to a conference to discuss PLCs and Mission. It was a great conference where we learned how to make this more efficient. 
• Budget Update- 
  • Total Planned Expenditures: $222,001
  • Anticipated Carry over: $9,634- On track, everyone is hired whom we anticipate.
  • Fully funded for our social working from a grant. We will have extra money to spend $20,000
  • Everything else is on budget. 
• Initial Math and Literacy Data- 
  • Looked at data regarding the nation- since 2019 we have gone down in both reading and math. 
    • 2063 dropped about 5 points and now dropping 8 points
  • Conference  and need these skills to be successful:
    • Reading
    • Math
    • Number sense
    • English language
    • Social and academic behaviors
    • Health and home
  • There are the basics every student needs- so we looked at how we are doing in these areas. 
  • Data from 2 years ago as we are still waiting on last year on how we measure with school most like us. 
    • Reading 37.2%
    • Math 30.9%
    • Science: 42.7%
  • Look at demographics, number of students, race, etc. 
  • Report on data gateway 
  • Report on reading based on IXL testing from the start of this year 
    • 36% on grade level
    • This test is measuring comprehension
    • Measured by grade level
  • What we are trying to do is utilize this type of screener at the beginning of the year so we can intervene early in the year. 
  • We as educators have to give the students the skills they need, so when we have kids that come from poverty we need to expose them to the literacy environment to learn these skills- (51% of those here are MLMS). This is not to say that the house is not a language rich home, but what impact are we having as a school?
    • Right now it seems that poverty is having a bigger impact. 
  • Achieve 3000- 
    • 92 more students are now reading on or above grade level than at the beginning of the year
    • 872 students are regularly engaging with Achieve 3000- showing strong buy-in and consistency in classroom implementation. 
    • Lexile growth of 50-60 points by November puts Mount Logan’s students ahead of the typical mid year trajectory for middle school readers. 
    • The 6th and 7th hour are normally tough, it is late but the hour before lunch and the  hour lunch have been found to be the hardest hours for behavior and wellness room visits. 
    • Attendance has been much better- 30% chronic absentee- at the end of the year we were at 40%. 
  • Students who did not start/finish
    • We only give the test during certain dates so we do have to call it. 
    • We could do better at pulling those who miss it later on, but we don't have aides to help out with this. 
    • Normally open for about 10 days. 
    • Currently- students take this during the class hour. 
    • No requirement for us to do a screener to parents. We don't have expectations but we could. 
  • Math- 
    • Overall- 23% at or above
    • 60% far below
    • Math does break it down more than reading. 
    • This year with math we are doing thinking classrooms. 
      • Teachers went to a conference to learn this new way.
      • Principal Holmgrem visited a middle school that did this last year and will be taking our teachers down to watch their teachers and how they do it. 
      • We are wanting to add in deep level thinking and be engaged and active. 
      • For this model kids stand while they are working. 
    • Students who did not start/finish
      • We only give the test during certain dates so we do have to call it. 
      • We could do better at pulling those who miss it later on, but we don't have aides to help out with this. 
      • Normally open for about 10 days. 
      • Currently- students take this during the class hour. 
      • No requirement for us to do a screener to parents. We don't have expectations but we could. 
    • If we engage with this early we will know when to help better. 
    • We want to use the test to inform and help us know how we can be better. We are using this to improve what we are doing today. 
  • Goal 1 for this year-
    • RISE 20% within the classroom assessments given. 
    • 85% on vocabulary for non-RISE areas.
  • Goal 2 and 3- 1 year of growth. 
    • Years worth of growth- 80% at least a year for Math and Reading. 
• Proposal- $18,360 from our school LAND trust funds
  • Use these funds to provide teachers with three full release days for structured collaborative and instructional planning.
  • These funds will cover substitute costs. 
  • The full- day sessions would allow all our 51 teachers to engage in deep, uninterrupted work focused on the core elements of effective PLCs specifically. 
• Public Input- 
  • It is disheartening for the amount of money and time we are putting in and seeing the low achievement. 
  • Can we ask teachers to share the IXL data (Math and Reading) with parents?
    • Principal Holmgren will see if we can find a way to link it to parentsquare
    • The teachers have been asked to do a lot this year with Achieve 3000 but this is a great idea. 
    • There can be hope when students see that they are improving. 
  • Achieve 3000- using a homeroom to make this more beneficial
    • This would help with the switching of accounts. 
    • This would give consistency. 
  • Proposal of money- Comments
    • I hate the idea of making sub plans. Are they really going to learn with the sub.
      • Could we go to the school board and ask for more data dive days instead.  
      • Principal Holmgren needs to get teacher approval
        • What else do teachers need? Time for planning?
• Next Steps- 
  • Think about the proposal
  • Put in front of teacher
• Motion to adjourn 

Next Meeting: Dec. 8, 2025