performance with a rich curriculum, qualified educators, and strong community involvement. That combination has translated into improved attendance, safe and supportive learning environments, and academic excellence. Superintendent Dr. Terry Brenner summarizes the district’s mission, sharing, “We want to make sure that all of our students are passion focused, passion oriented, and they know what they want to do with their life by the time they are 16.” ATTENDANCE, ENGAGEMENT, AND WELL BEING Preparing students for future endeavors also requires keeping them engaged, supported, and present in the classroom. Attendance is crucial to this, and like many districts nationwide, Grand Forks has experienced rising absenteeism, due in part to hybrid learning models introduced during the pandemic.To address this, the district has instituted an attendance practice. “It basically suggests to students that you need to attend to learn, and we don’t want students to take the easy way out,” Dr. Brenner details. “We have a series of absent thresholds, when we start communicating with parents, when we involve social workers, when we involve a student signing a contract to be in school, all the way to when we drop them from a class at the high school level.”The approach has already produced measurable results, with grades improving, and students becoming more engaged in their learning. Grand Forks has also taken an innovative approach at Red River High School, redesigning the day to reduce stress on students and teachers. “We’ve basically blown up the schedule,” he describes.“We have two days a week at Red River High School, where we’ve cut back classes by four minutes, and we now have two 25 minute periods twice a week of flex time, where students can go to their content areas, and get extra help from their teachers.” Dr. Brenner notes that this benefits students who need extra time, and educators, who were previously giving up prep time to try and catch up. “Now, it’s within the schedule,” he highlights. “Students know where to go, and one of our associate principals tracks all of that. If they don’t need additional help, they have two 25 minute blocks of homework time built into the instructional day.” A FOCUS ON HOLISTIC DEVELOPMENT Grand Forks Public Schools currently operates as a one to one district at the middle and high school levels, with devices also available to younger students. Currently, as part of a $4.4 million budget realignment, the district is reassessing how technology is used.“One of the questions that we’re asking is, is it really that important that we’re a one to one school district and that we provide the technology for all of our students,” Brenner says.“We 387 CIVIL AND MUNICIPAL VOLUME 07, ISSUE 01 GRAND FORKS PUBLIC SCHOOLS
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