photo by: Screenshot

Interim Superintendent Jeanice Swift reports findings from fall community conversations on Monday, January 27, 2025.

Too much administration and a need for more safety measures, including metal detectors and extra police officers in schools, are among the biggest concerns the Lawrence school district has been hearing from the community in its recent public feedback efforts.

The results from a series of in-person feedback sessions and an online survey were presented in a report to Lawrence school board members on Monday. As the Journal-World has reported, Interim Superintendent Jeanice Swift said the online survey had received approximately 1,193 responses, with a majority coming from parents.

The report doesn’t give specific numbers of people who voiced concerns about each specific issue, but it does give some idea of topics that came up frequently in the feedback efforts. Among the top takeaways, it said, was that “safety concerns were pervasive, with references to violence, bullying and inefficient consequences for disruptive behavior” among students.

Respondents were interested in stricter enforcement of discipline policies and stronger safety measures, the report said, including metal detectors, pat-downs, additional school resource officers or SROs, and improved threat response protocols to address concerns about safety and student behavior.

In addition, many respondents were critical of the district’s administrative practices, “citing inefficiencies, poor transparency, nepotism, and a lack of accountability,” according to the report.

Some of the concerns were about high administrative salaries and the perceived mismanagement of resources, and respondents often called for more funds to be redirected from district offices to classrooms. One priority voiced in the public feedback efforts for the upcoming year was to increase salaries for teachers and staff and reduce administrative overhead.

“[A]ddressing teacher dissatisfaction and burnout is essential for stability and success,” the report said.

As far as classroom instruction goes, some respondents voiced concerns about overuse of electronic devices. While most respondents recommended stricter cellphone policies to minimize distractions in the classroom, the report notes that opinions varied on how to enforce these measures.

“Many emphasize that enforcement should not fall solely on teachers, and some express concerns about practicality and the impact of technology restrictions on communication during emergencies,” the report said. “Overall, the sentiment leans toward reducing non-educational cell phone use in schools.”

The district has already taken some action on this issue, implementing a ban on cellphones during instructional time in high school classrooms in December 2024.

There were several other areas for improvement for the Lawrence school district detailed in the report, including:

• Reducing overcrowding in classrooms.

• Improving communication and transparency with families. Respondents expressed frustration about late or unclear updates regarding policies, safety incidents and curriculum changes.

• Improving academic rigor. Respondents were concerned about grade inflation and a lack of focus on fundamental skills like reading, writing and math.

The report also listed some things that respondents thought the school district was doing well, including the dedication of its teachers and staff to students’ success; inclusion efforts for LGBTQ+ and neurodiverse students; and extracurricular activities and career readiness initiatives.

In the community conversation sessions, attendees were asked three questions — identifying things the district was doing well, things that could be improved and top priorities moving forward. The school district collaborated with the University of Kansas to analyze the responses, identifying key themes and priorities based on the feedback. The KU team’s work was done at no cost to the district.

Going forward, the school board, district leadership, teachers and staff will use the insights from these conversations to shape strategic planning and decision-making. The report said the school district would provide regular updates on progress and next steps.

photo by: Screenshot

Key themes for strengths, opportunities and priorities for the Lawrence school district with feedback from parents/caregivers and staff.

photo by: Screenshot

Key themes for strengths, opportunities and priorities for the Lawrence school district with feedback from students.