STATE COLLEGE – State College Area School District Board of Directors on Monday heard an update on the progress of the district’s Future Ready Comprehensive Plan goals.
Future Ready plans are a requirement for every school district in the state, and give administrators a chance to set goals and action times for continuous improvement in leadership, training, and learning. SCASD’s current three-year plan runs from 2024-2027.
On Monday, administrators gave an update on the progress on goals one, four, and five, which deal with special education and English Language Learner growth.
For example, in one goal, the district seeks to provide all teachers with ongoing ELL professional development. During the 2024-25 school year, the first of the three-year plan, the district aimed for 80% of teachers to take ELL professional development, and exceeded that goal by reaching 87%. By the final year of the plan, the 2026-2027 school year, the district seeks to provide annual ELL professional development to all teaching staff.
“These goals are important so that children can have the ability to read, speak, write, and be learners, and access not just those basic skills, but all parts of education,” said Tonya Black, director of equity, inclusion, and belonging K-12. “Education raises the status of students and their families as learning can change the whole trajectory of your life.”
Also at the meeting, the board reviewed a district wide facilities master plan update for the district’s playgrounds.
As part of the master plan process, district employees are creating a new comprehensive, multi-year plan to address school playgrounds.
An engineering firm conducted an assessment of the playgrounds in spring 2025, and the district is using data from that assessment, along with the 2019 playground master plan, in developing the new plan. They will also seek feedback from school communities.
The initial planning includes themes of keeping aspects of nature-play-based playgrounds, building in adaptive play, incorporating open areas to let kids explore while keeping open sight lines, and using bright colors.
In other business, the board approved:
- the purchase of a Ford F-550 with snowplow kit and accessories for the transportation department at a cost not to exceed $109,578.
- a Memorandum of Understanding with the members of the State College Area Education Association regarding teachers who teach virtual courses outside their normal course load assignments for the 2025-2026 school year.
