Curriculum Committee
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October Newsletter: Indigenous Peoples’ Day, Elections & Meeting Highlights
🔔 October’s newsletter is out – and happy Indigenous Peoples’ Day, everyone! • School board elections matter – and so do the policy issues ahead • Our 2026 state assessment outcomes are public • Student voice at work: Safe Routes To School near East Middle • Highlights for tonight’s school board meeting • Education athletics:…
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Agenda highlights for Monday’s school board meeting
Agenda highlights for Monday’s school board meeting: • YMCA recognition • School safety update • District course catalog updates • Robotic field liner purchase • Board committee updates * Not on the agenda but worth noting was last week’s excellent Curriculum Committee discussion on Special Education. Learn more about that here: https://bit.ly/47vHPKF 🗓️ Monday, October…
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We don’t talk enough about special education
We don’t talk enough about special education. Yesterday’s Curriculum Committee meeting impressed me with the depth of work happening across the district to support students with disabilities, and I learned a lot. Special education is so much more than IEPs and specialized services. It’s about helping students learn, belong, build independence, and prepare for life…
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Supporting Our Mavericks
A really encouraging story in today’s Traverse City Record-Eagle about Traverse City High School. Over the past three years, the school’s on-time graduation rate has nearly doubled, from 23.9% in 2023 to 46.7% in 2025, while the dropout rate fell from 23.9% to 13.0%. That’s what can happen when we build pathways around students’ needs.…
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TCAPS Board Committee Meeting Agendas for Week of August 31
Another busy week ahead for your school board before school starts next week: Curriculum Committee (today – August 31 at 8:15a) – 2026/27 TCAPS District Course Catalog update – Summer school at Traverse Heights Elementary and Traverse City High School updates – Traverse City High School update – Sex Education Advisory Board Co-Chair recommendations Finance…
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Our Libraries Are More Than Libraries: Creating Connection in a Device-Heavy World
At last week’s school board meeting, we discussed changes to our student cell phone and wireless communication device policy. Part of the reason for the update is a new Michigan requirement that limits students’ use of wireless communication devices during instructional time. The state law establishes a baseline for districts, including specific exceptions for things…
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August Newsletter
August’s newsletter is out – have a great rest of the summer, everyone! • 2026 elementary school math/literacy outcomes • 2026 secondary school math/literacy outcomes • Looking beyond the classroom: Lessons from the Kids Count report • Community partnerships: Creating the conditions for student success • More than buildings: Investing in student success • How…
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Keeping Our Promise: Reporting on the Outcomes We’ve Chosen to Prioritize
One of the promises we made as a Board was to be transparent about the outcomes we’ve chosen to prioritize—and to report our progress along the way. At last week’s Curriculum Committee meeting, we reviewed several of our secondary strategic plan goals, including literacy and math outcomes for 8th graders (PSAT) and 11th graders (SAT).…
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Measuring What Matters: A First Look at TCAPS’ Progress Toward the 2030 Vision
One of the commitments we made in our new 2030 Vision* was to measure what matters—and to share our progress along the way. At yesterday’s Curriculum Committee meeting, we reviewed our latest elementary reading and math outcomes using the NWEA, our district’s benchmark assessment. Unlike the state assessment (M-STEP), which won’t be publicly released until…
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School Board Meetings for the Week of May 25th, 2026
Have a great holiday weekend! Next week is another busy week for your school board. Curriculum Committee (May 26 at 8:15a): 1) Middle School Science Curriculum 2) AP Research 3) Evidenced-Based Reporting 4) K-12 Technology Usage Finance Committee (May 28 at 8:15a): 1) Extension of 31aa (Mental Health/Safety Funds) Resolution 2) Middle School Science Curriculum…
