Survey Results Send Positive Message
Walla Walla Public Schools’ officials are celebrating results of the 2019-2020 school year parent, student, staff and community perception surveys which revealed strong support for the school district. This is the third consecutive year the district has conducted comprehensive stakeholder surveys as it seeks to gain feedback and monitor Strategic Plan progress.
“I couldn't be more proud of our results, growth, and hard work that reveal remarkable feedback from students, parents, and faculty alike,” said Superintendent Smith. “Results also revealed strong support from the community as we work in partnership to provide a first-class education for our students.”
Two survey mechanisms were used again this school year. The Educational Effectiveness survey was completed by staff, students and parents. This anonymous survey tool is administered to more than 1,000 schools across the nation allowing the district to compare its feedback against nationwide averages in addition to benchmarking performance against high performing schools considered “Schools of Distinction.” More than 3000 Walla Walla Public Schools students (grades 4-12), 90% of the K-12 building-level certificated and classified staff, and nearly 900 parents completed the survey.
Community members at-large participated in a statistically reliable telephone survey. A total of 300 randomly selected citizens participated in this survey to help school officials learn the public’s perceptions of the district.
“By conducting annual perception surveys with our stakeholders we can monitor long-term trends, look for areas of celebration, develop plans to shore up potential areas for improvement, and most importantly, monitor the critical areas of our strategic plan,” said Superintendent Dr. Wade Smith. “Strategic Plan areas we are especially tuned in to include measuring school culture indicators around staff collaboration, aligned and coherent systems, social emotional supports for students and student safety/belonging.”
District officials were elated that results from students, staff and parents not only exceeded nationwide averages, but in most cases outperformed nationwide Schools of Distinction. In addition, public feedback at large continued to reinforce that an overwhelming majority of the community holds Walla Walla Schools in high regard.
Below are the survey results at a glance. Visit the WWPS website and select the Strategic Plan tab to see a comprehensive report of all results. WEBSITE https://www.wwps.org/strategicplan
Educational Effectiveness Survey Results Summary
Staff Results:
• “Collaboration and Communication” and ”Effective Leadership” are both 13% above Schools of Distinction
• “Curriculum, Instruction and Assessment” is 20% above Schools of Distinction
• “Cultural Responsiveness” is nearly 30% above Schools of Distinction
• “Districtwide/District Office Support” is 23% above Schools of Distinction
Student Results:
• Student results are well above national averages and are at, or above, Schools of Distinction in almost every category
• Student feedback on “Safety and Bullying” is above Schools of Distinction and 8% higher than nationwide schools
• Student feedback on ”Diversity and Cultural Competency” is at Schools of Distinction levels
Parent Results:
• Parent results met or exceeded Schools of Distinction in every single category
• Most notably, WWPS parents relayed strong support for building leadership, noted that they felt engaged with their child's school (collaboration category) and felt informed about their child's progress and keeping up to date.
Community Telephone Survey Results Summary:
Of survey respondents with an opinion,
• 84% gave WWPS a positive performance rating (up 10% in three years)
• 89% would recommend WWPS to others
• 80% believe WWPS is on the right track
• 76% believe WWPS uses tax dollars wisely
• 81% believe WWPS is open/transparent
“Thank you again to our community, staff, parents and students for providing this feedback, a critical component necessary in helping WWPS realize its vision of Developing Washington’s Most Sought-After Graduates,” said Superintendent Smith.