District Accountability Committee
MARCH 2025
Galileo Middle School Making Strides
The recent unanimous vote from the Colorado State Board of Education, approving Galileo Middle School's strategic plan in becoming the first school in Colorado to use the community school pathway as a transformation strategy, has begun with the recent opening of the Ascend Center at Galileo. This is step one in the two-year plan that has Galileo fully implementing the community school strategy in 2026-2027 school year.
Becoming a community school will play a pivotal role in supporting student achievement by fostering a holistic educational environment that addresses the multifaceted needs of students. Supports will include and can extend beyond traditional academic instruction by offering a broad spectrum of wraparound services and family support.
By integrating community resources and involving families and local organizations in the education process, Galileo Middle School will build strong, collaborative networks to reinforce student development both inside and outside the classroom. This comprehensive approach not only improves academic performance but also enhances social-emotional well-being, attendance rates, and overall student engagement, thereby contributing to a more equitable and effective education system.
Julia Scott
Principal
Galileo Middle School
Pre-K–Grade 12
Star Assessments are short tests that provide teachers with personalized learning data for each student.
Star tests are computer adaptive, which means they adjust in difficulty to each answer students provide. This helps teachers get the best data to help students in the shortest amount of testing time (about one-third of the time other tests require).
Students may take a Star test for early literacy, math, or reading. Teachers analyze the data they receive from Star Assessments to learn what students already know and what they are ready to learn next, to monitor student growth, and to determine which students may need additional help.
Star Assessments are research-based and scientifically proven to help teachers guide each student on their unique path to proficiency.
More information on this testing and assessments can be found on the STAR website.
It is time to start thinking about your school’s 2025-2026 Unified School Improvement Plan! We want to make sure that the USIPs of all schools have community input, and we also want the process to be effective and respectful of everyone’s time. To that end, we have made a plan with District leaders that we think will ensure SAC/community involvement.
Principals had a K-12 Principal meeting on Tuesday March 4. In this meeting, they reflected on this year’s USIP… what went well at the school, as well as areas of opportunity that may need to move forward into next year’s plan. SAC Call to Action: During your March meeting, please discuss this with your Principal, and give your input as a SAC on what you think went well this year and what are areas of opportunity from the perspective of the community. They are being given this same call to action. If you don't have another meeting scheduled prior to April 22, please reach out to your principal to offer your help and support in gathering community input and feedback.
We will be meeting with District leaders about this topic again in late April, to build on the process and we will send out next steps then. Thank you for your patience and trust as we build and test out a new process!
Courtney Hertner, Chair of
DAC Accreditation/Achievement Committee