DMPS Unveils Reimagining Education, Calls for Major Improvements
With the aspirational goal of reimagining education and reinvigorating schools, Des Moines Public Schools shared an overview of a multi-year plan at this week’s School Board meeting that calls for major changes and improvements to enhance support for the educational outcomes of students in Des Moines.
“Reimagining Education is thinking differently about how to educate Des Moines students, galvanizing our community to be innovative, courageous and bold in our actions, and making DMPS a destination district for families who want the best experiences and opportunities for their children,” Superintendent Dr. Ian Roberts said. “At the same time, Reimagining Education is also being more efficient with limited district funds, modernizing facilities and programs so DMPS can focus resources on meeting students’ needs, and keeping our excellent teachers and staff.”
Elements of Reimagining Education
INCREASING ACCESS TO FULL-DAY PRESCHOOL
Access to full-day preschool is a proven path to greater success in future learning. Reimagining Education prioritizes full-day preschool with a model where every student in the district has access to these essential services, creating a solid foundation for the cognitive, social and emotional development of each student.
Reimagining Education would increase access and reduce transportation barriers by providing Pre-K services close to each Des Moines family at Pre-K centers and at selected elementary schools throughout the district.
REDESIGNING THE MIDDLE SCHOOL EXPERIENCE
To ease the transition between elementary and middle school, DMPS will reimagine our middle schools as vibrant, tight-knit hubs of hands-on exploration, integrating career and technical education and interest-based learning so students can discover their passions. This kind of learning leads to higher student achievement.
Reimagining Education would build classrooms and change grade configurations to make this possible, with sixth grade moving to the elementary level.
DEVELOPING INTEREST-BASE SIGNATURE SCHOOLS
Signature Schools are innovative programs that DMPS families from any district region can choose for their children, to immerse them in specific topics that get them engaged in their learning. While there is no decision yet about what these might focus on in Des Moines, other districts have Signature Schools that focus on things like health sciences, arts, communications or STEM (science, technology, engineering and math). DMPS would get feedback from students, families, staff and community members when it chooses themes for the Signature Schools.
DMPS’ Cowles Montessori School is one existing example of a Signature School.
Reimagining Education would repurpose existing buildings and build new spaces to make these exciting Signature Schools available to students in each geographic region of the district. This way, although families would be able to choose any of the Signature Schools for their children, all of them would have options closer to their homes.
PREPARING STUDENT FOR SUCCESSFUL FUTURES AFTER GRADUATION
As called for in the new DMPS strategic plan, Diploma Plus will provide more opportunities to students and better prepare them for their future. Every DMPS student will have a clear pathway to explore their interests and prepare for career, college or whatever is next for them. The learning will start in preschool with important life skills and build throughout all the grade levels. By the time they graduate, students will have multiple opportunities to prepare for the future, resulting in special Diploma Plus distinctions and certificates.
Reimagining Education includes providing the facilities necessary to ensure each DMPS student, from Pre-K through 12th grade, can get these experiences and opportunities.
PROVIDING HIGH-QUALITY K-12 ACTIVITY AND ATHLETIC PROGRAMMING AND FACILITIES
Activities, clubs and athletics increase student interest and engagement in the life of a school, which then improves their academic success.
Reimagining Education would include additions and renovations to make sure each student across the district has access to engaging extracurricular activities in high-quality facilities, including varsity-level competition stadiums, eight-lane competitive running tracks and competition swimming pools. DMPS will prioritize improvements that benefit a wide range of students in a variety of activities. .
Changes Called for in Reimagining Education Proposal
- Starting with more Pre-K centers and more Pre-K classrooms at elementary schools, and then changing the district’s grade configuration so we have elementary schools serving kindergarten through sixth grade, middle schools serving seventh and eighth grades, high schools serving ninth through 12th grades, and Signature Schools serving different grade configurations from pre-K through 12th grade
- Creating three regions of the district (northwest, northeast and south), each with its own feeder patterns and comprehensive high schools. These regions and feeder patterns would increase neighborhoods’ connections to their schools. The Reimagining Education committee focused on making sure students in each region would have access to high-quality learning spaces and engaging educational programs.
- Creating as many as eight new program locations for Signature Schools, with two or three school options available in each region, repurposing existing buildings and adding new program-specific spaces.
- Adding onto many of DMPS’ existing schools, providing hundreds of needed classrooms and spaces for collaboration and innovation, to make sure each DMPS student can learn in high-quality, effective environments.
- Gradually retiring, or repurposing, some buildings as the district completes construction on new, more effective learning spaces added onto schools that are accessible to more families. This would allow DMPS to spend resources on better meeting students’ needs and on keeping its excellent teachers and staff instead of on the expensive maintenance of less efficient buildings.
Development of the Reimagining Education Proposal
As part of the year-long process to help envision the best plan for Des Moines, the Reimagining Education committee of students, parents, teachers, staff, and community members met dozens of times.
They intensively studied top school systems, reviewed research about the most effective education programs, visited high-performing schools in similar districts within a day’s drive, and looked at DMPS classrooms in new and old buildings. They analyzed data to determine which DMPS buildings and sites could allow the district to provide the best learning environments for each Des Moines student.
Reasons for Reimagining Education
For the past several years, student enrollment in DMPS has been declining. The pandemic caused enrollment to slip further, and our projections indicate that enrollment will continue to drop in the future. While fewer students means less revenue for our district, it also means that facility and space needs will change.
Student enrollment has a significant impact on the operations of a school district. Districts with declining enrollment face challenges such as too much classroom space. The costs of maintaining excess space can take away from priorities like meeting student needs and keeping great teachers and staff.
Next Steps – Getting Public Feedback
DMPS will present further details about Reimagining Education at the district’s annual State of the Schools event. This year’s event will be held on the morning of Tuesday, February 11 at North High School.
Following that event, DMPS will provide a number of opportunities for students, staff, families and the community to provide feedback on how to best implement Reimagining Education.
Then the Reimagining Education committee will review the feedback and use it to refine the proposal before bringing it to the School Board for its consideration.
For additional information and updates, please visit reimagine.dmschools.org.