Littleton School Committee Approves Three Student Enrollment Policies, Reviews MCAS Data

LITTLETON -- January 12, 2023, Littleton School Committee reviews 2022 MCAS results and approves three student enrollment policies. The committee heard a detailed presentation from Director of Teaching and Learning Elizabeth Steele, High School Principal Keith Harrington, Middle School Assistant Principal Matt Labangie, and Russell Street Principal Cheryl Temple, covering results across all grade levels under the new DESE-designated benchmark year. High school grade 10 ELA proficiency reached 85 percent, 44 points above the state average, while grade 6 math drew concern, with a student growth percentile of 33.7, attributed to three different math teachers in the prior year. Committee member Brad Austin pressed administrators on a persistent gap between general-education students and those with IEPs or 504 plans, citing fifth-grade math figures of 49 percent proficiency for general-education students versus 12 percent for students with disabilities. Superintendent Keith Clancy said the district is "one of the few districts stabilized in the state" and was direct on curriculum: "We will never teach to the test." The committee unanimously approved policies on homeless student enrollment, educational opportunities for military children, and educational opportunities for children in foster care, all sourced from the Massachusetts Association of School Committees.