Survey raises questions for KISD
By LESTER MURRAY news2@kilgorenewsherald.com

Kilgore school district, under the direction of new superintendent Jody Clements, is asking some tough questions and is getting some tough answers.

Dennis Williams, superintendent for human resources , said KISD hoped to learn what might be good or bad in the district and then address changes if needed.

"There is no better way to get answers then to go to the source - staff, parents and students," said Williams. "It was decided to conduct a survey addressing many issues and because the survey is anonymous we felt we would get straight answers."

Williams said the survey was put together with the help of campus principals, administrative staff and of course Clements. "We got feedback on different types of questions and those questions are what made up the survey," said Williams. "The survey was then taken by KISD staff, parents of students and of course students."

Students at Maude Laird Middle School and Kilgore High School participated in the survey. "We used both e-mail and paper copies to distribute the surveys," said Williams. "The surveys were available in both Spanish and English."

Almost 90 percent of the staff submitted surveys, 69 percent of the students returned surveys and 1412 surveys were returned by parents, said Williams.

Over the next few weeks Clements and his staff, as well as the principals at each campus, will go over the survey material to evaluate and prioritize the data received and to draft give an overview of what the data means to the district. "After reviewing the surveys, I will set up meetings with each campus principal and Williams and me to go over lists of what each campus feels is their weaknesses and strengths," said Clements.

Due to TAKS testing underway this week, it will take a couple of weeks to get these meetings accomplished and then to determine an overall goal for the district.

At this time, no one who participated in the survey will have access to the completed data, but KISD is looking into the ways to distribute this information for those who are interested.

School staffers expressed con- cern about violence and discipline within the district. When asked if students at KISD are aware of effective ways to react if they become a bystander to violence, 46 percent of staff said no. When asked if violent behavior affects academic achievement at KISD, 43 percent of staff said yes and a third said students who threaten or fight with other students are a serious problem in this school. When asked if teachers spend to much instructional time disciplining students, 40 percent said yes.

In the survey of parents, most felt KISD is a safe place to learn - 92 percent in all - and when asked if students in KISD are well behaved overall, only 27 percent said no.

Students were not asked whether the feel their schools are safe or if a discipline problem exists. They were asked if they feel they can go to an adult in their school when they need to talk. Out of 562 students who responded, 320 said 'no.'

In addition to raw numbers, the survey allowed parents and students to offer written comments. That opportunity brought up more topics than were listed in the base questionnaire.

High school level comments ranged from poor food in the cafeteria to lack of communication between teachers and students.

At Maude Laird Middle School comments ranged from poor food and unsanitary conditions in restrooms to unequal treatment of students by staff.

Parental concerns at Kilgore Heights focused on a better drop-off procedure for students and cleaner on restrooms

No extended comments from staff were included in the copy of the survey provided to the newspaper.

Williams said there is a great deal of information in this survey that needs to be digested by his office and the individual campuses themselves before a plan can be set to go forward. "We have to look at every number and comment and then assess each for its value and then prioritize," said Williams.

Williams said this is the first such surbey at KISD in at least 30 years.

"We know we have made mistakes and this survey is not perfect," said Williams. "But we hope that assessing all of the information returned to us will allow us to make changes needed by the district. There is no better way to learn than by listening to the people who work and learn in the district," said Williams.