School district reaches tentative wage agreements with staff

District names new principals for Woodlawn and Liberty Memorial Central

Staffing identified as top barrier to student success in needs assessment

New state assessment cut scores complicate year-over-year data comparisons

Community Connections secures $50,000 grant to launch student-run coffee shop

Summer student meals pickup location relocated to Douglas County fairgrounds

District seeks community feedback to update Safe Routes to School plan

Board approves over $460,000 for school roofing and water line repairs

School district reaches tentative wage agreements with staff

LAWRENCE, Kan. - The Lawrence Public Schools Board of Education announced that tentative agreements have been reached with both of the district's bargaining units, securing upcoming wage increases for all staff members. The board praised the district's negotiations committee and the Lawrence Education Association for their collaborative efforts to improve the working environment and compensation. The finalized contracts will now be sent back to the respective bargaining units for official ratification.

District names new principals for Woodlawn and Liberty Memorial Central

LAWRENCE, Kan. — The school board unanimously approved the hiring of two new principals for the upcoming school year. Meg Clark will lead Woodlawn Elementary School, while Phillip Mitchell was approved as the new principal of Liberty Memorial Central Middle School. Superintendent Jeanice Kerr Swift said both candidates were the overwhelming choice of their respective school staffs following a multi-round interview process.

Correction (May 12, 2026): An earlier version of this article incorrectly identified the two new principals as Jayci Roberson and Jennifer Schmitt. The district named Meg Clark as the next principal of Woodlawn Elementary and Phillip Mitchell as the next principal of Liberty Memorial Central Middle School. Citizen Journal regrets the error.

Staffing identified as top barrier to student success in needs assessment

LAWRENCE, Kan. - Additional staffing and smaller class sizes were cited as the primary levers to improve student state assessment scores, according to the district's annual spring needs assessment presented by Director of Data and Assessment James Polk. Building leadership teams across the district also identified chronic absenteeism, a need for high-quality instructional materials and increased mental health support as significant barriers to student proficiency. The school board will draft a formal response to the feedback, which will be published alongside each school's individual needs assessment on the district website to guide future budgetary decisions.

New state assessment cut scores complicate year-over-year data comparisons

LAWRENCE, Kan. - The recent release of Kansas Assessment Program scores showed a general districtwide increase in students scoring at a proficient Level 3 and a decrease in Level 1 scores; however, district officials cautioned against making direct year-over-year comparisons. District staff said the state implemented new grading cut scores last summer, effectively refreshing the English, math and science tests. Consequently, the latest data serves more as a comparison to current statewide performance than as a definitive longitudinal measure of local district progress.

Community Connections secures $50,000 grant to launch student-run coffee shop

LAWRENCE, Kan. - A new student-run coffee shop is slated to open this fall after the district's Community Connections program was awarded a $50,000 grant from Blue Cross Blue Shield of Kansas' Pathways to a Healthy Kansas initiative. The funds will be used to purchase equipment to launch the Empowering Brew coffee shop and expand the existing student bakery program. The initiative is designed to provide community transition students with real-world, public-facing workplace-readiness and customer-service experiences.

Summer student meals pickup location relocated to Douglas County fairgrounds

LAWRENCE, Kan. - It was announced that the district's summer meals pickup location will move from the Youth Sports Complex to the Douglas County fairgrounds this year. The relocation is intended to make the food distribution site more accessible to families, particularly in light of ongoing construction on the trafficway. The federally supported program provides nutritional support to local students during summer break.

District seeks community feedback to update Safe Routes to School plan

LAWRENCE, Kan. - In partnership with Lawrence-Douglas County Public Health, the city of Lawrence and the Lawrence-Douglas County Metropolitan Planning Organization, the school district is soliciting public input to update the community's Safe Routes to School plan. Families, caregivers and community members are encouraged to participate in an online survey to share their experiences and suggestions regarding students walking and biking to local schools. The community feedback survey will remain open through May 16.

Board approves over $460,000 for school roofing and water line repairs

LAWRENCE, Kan. - As part of its consent agenda, the board unanimously approved $427,366 for roofing and siding improvements at Billy Mills Middle School and West Middle School. Additionally, the board approved a $36,208 emergency fire-suppression water-line repair at Southwest Middle School. It was noted the Southwest project includes installing polyvinyl chloride pipe to address future infrastructure failures, as older commercial water pipes can deteriorate over time from ground contact.

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