Core Team

On October 14, the Academic Programming Action Team engaged in their third meeting, again strongly attended by stakeholders representing all six state-defined Career and Technical Education (CTE) service areas: Agriculture, Applied Science, Business, Health Sciences, Human Services, and Information Solutions. The purpose of the meeting was to continue their work from September 13, refining themes, generating outcomes, and listing courses. Then, attendees in each area engaged in a gallery walk, identifying connections with the other content areas. Examples of connections include ethics and cultural competency, basic technology skills, and communication skills.

Outcome: By the end of this meeting, the action team created Version 2.0 of programming for the Hub. At the next meeting on October 28, our team will continue refining each content area, expand on the idea of integrated courses across content areas, consider industry-recognized credentials, and move toward Version 3.0.

On October 3rd, the Community/Business Partnerships Action Team met for the second time.  At this meeting, higher education leaders, business executives, philanthropic organizations, and district staff spent time learning more about the working vision for the Innovative Hub and brainstorming opportunities for community/business collaboration with the district. 

Main Tasks:
Establishing a Charter for the Action Team :To add clarity of purpose, the team reviewed and provided feedback on a draft action team charter to drive the group’s remaining work. 
Exploring the Innovative Hub’s Current Vision :To ground their ideas in the district’s framework, the group learned more about the district’s current thinking about the Innovative Hub, including by engaging in discussion with the Director of Postsecondary Success, Dr. Jill Urich, and by reviewing current district, state, and national data related to postsecondary opportunities. 
Brainstorming Collaboration and Partnership Opportunities: To share their unique perspective as community leaders, the group members began to generate ideas about how the community and district could partner to offer students and staff career exploration opportunities – and how those opportunities could be sustainably funded. 

Outcome: By the end of the session, the group solidified its central team objective and agreed to the general topics that will be discussed in future meetings, which was inspired by the robust list of partnership ideas that emerged from the brainstorming session.  The group will meet again in November and will meet monthly through April. 

The Activities and Athletics Action Team met on October 13. The group had a robust discussion about the current facilities used for activities and athletics as well as the future facilities needs of the district.

Main Tasks:
Brainstorming
What lessons can we learn from the use of current facilities?
What activities currently do not have dedicated space?
What are the current needs for practice vs competition/performance?
What future activities should we plan for?
What is the interaction between athletic/activity spaces and teaching spaces?

Data Collection
The team reviewed an initial list of data from nationally recognized programs, state guidance on athletics, model intramural programs, and more.
The team generated a list of data needed to help with future decision-making.

Outcome:  A similar process will be used at the next meeting to discuss the activity program design and the potential for intramural programs.

We are pleased to share that the 6-12 Programming Action Team held its first meeting on October 2, 2025. This dedicated group, which includes teachers, instructional coaches, and administrators from across our district, is working to prepare the system for the grade-level configuration change, examining the programming offered at the comprehensive schools. Particularly, it is charged with preparing the system for new grade-level configurations in our secondary system. Addressing what programming is offered at the 6-8 and 9-12 buildings and preparing staff for this transition will be the outcomes of its work. 

Main Tasks: 
The team’s work for the year is focused on several important tasks:
Creating a Standards Referenced Grading (SRG) Teacher Guidebook to serve as a vital resource for our educators as we enter this new grade-level configuration. This common understanding of grading will help ensure consistency throughout the district as we approach the new makeup of our buildings.
Selecting “anchor” publications on best practices to ensure consistency and quality across all our materials. 
Sunsetting outdated documents to keep our resources current and aligned with best practices.

Outcome: At this first meeting, the team got to work, generating key elements to include in the upcoming guidebook. Each of these elements was discussed in-depth, with a clear rationale provided to ensure they meet the needs of both teachers and students.

On September 9, the Academic Programming Action Team kicked off with nearly 100 participants from diverse groups, including industry professionals, post-secondary institutions, ACSD employees, parents, and students. The attendees represented all six state-defined Career and Technical Education (CTE) service areas: Agriculture, Applied Science, Business, Health Sciences, Human Services, and Information Solutions.
The meeting focused on collaborative brainstorming around several key questions:

Essential Courses for Post-HS Success: What courses are crucial for students to thrive after high school?
Exciting Classes with a Dedicated Building: How do we create engaging and innovative classes that could be offered if a dedicated facility were available?
Important Academic Skills: Which academic skills are vital for students to master during their courses?
Valuable Executive or “Human” Skills: What are the essential executive and interpersonal skills students need to succeed in an ever-changing world?

In preparation for the next meeting, stakeholders are tasked with gathering information from their networks and analyzing data related to workforce needs and student interests.

This semester, the Academic Programming Action Team will be working toward:
Defining the courses offered within each service area 
Defining which courses will be offered at the innovative hub and which will be offered at the comprehensive high schools
Refine which classes will be prioritized

The Community Partnerships Action Team kicked off on September 5, reviewing:
The Path to the Innovative Hub: Building on the work of the Strategic Plan and the community’s established “must-haves,” the internal team spent the last year researching existing programs to better establish building and programmatic designs.
The Goals for Community Partnerships: By Spring 2024, we will develop a recommendation for a model for community partnership and sustainable funding to support the innovative hub’s unique student experiences.

The next steps for this team will be to better understand and define:
What current trends, research, and data tell us about the workforce and job opportunities and Ankeny’s student’s postsecondary trajectory?
Defining a charter of work for the team to accomplish regarding partnerships.
Working to better inform the larger community of the purpose and goals of the innovative hub work.

The 6-12 Activities & Athletics Action Team kicked off earlier this month to explore the future of Ankeny’s athletics and activities over the next 15 years.

Key Discussion Points:
Innovative Hub Project: The team reviewed the timeline for the upcoming innovative hub, noting that grade reconfiguration would likely take place a year after its completion.
Current Practices: The team discussed the existing structure of athletics and activities for grades 8-12, and how they are organized within the Hawk and Jaguar feeder systems for the two high schools.
Barriers to Student Engagement: Key barriers to activities and athletics discussed include cost to participate, transportation, scheduling conflicts, facility limitations, and budget constraints. The team also explored the impact of seasonal overlap, early participation pressure, and keeping students who are not highly active engaged.
Intramurals & No-Cut Policy: A significant part of the discussion revolved around the current no-cut policy and the potential introduction of an intramural program. There was agreement that both programs may not be able to coexist in their current forms. The team explored how intramurals could be implemented, starting at the 6th- and 7th-grade levels.
Expeditions: The team also reviewed the expeditions offered in 6th and 7th grades, which provide additional opportunities for student involvement outside traditional activities.

Upcoming Work:
Research best practices and review the activity & athletic structure of other school districts
Develop a clear vision for student involvement, gather data, and evaluate costs