State conservators and district leaders updated trustees on exit-criteria progress Wednesday and urged the board to adopt measurable customer-service metrics and continue careful fiscal oversight.

A conservator who presented to the board said three of four exit criteria are on track and praised the district for scheduling governance training, reviewing board operating procedures and establishing a superintendent-evaluation process. The conservator said these governance steps are critical to sustained success.

Conservator comments also focused heavily on fiscal management. The conservators applauded the district’s progress since the prior year — including meeting enrollment projections and maintaining academic performance while reducing multi‑million-dollar budget gaps — but warned the board that personnel costs and health-care expenditures remain the primary drivers that require discipline. The conservators encouraged creating a conservative hiring posture and closely tracking any new revenue should voters approve a tax increase.

On customer service, the conservators said the district needs measurable baseline data rather than solely anecdotal indicators. Suggestions included response-time measures for central office and campus requests, surveys with Likert scales, and tracking the time from initial contact to resolution. One conservator noted that inexpensive internal surveys or later adoption of vendor products could provide the required baseline data and recommended setting short- and long-term targets tied to improvement measures.

Board members and administrators confirmed they are vetting tools and products to gather constituent-service data; the board asked staff to return with recommendations. Conservators agreed to continue coaching the district toward an exit strategy while stressing the need for data-driven measures of customer service and continued attention to cash flow and deferred maintenance.

Ending: Conservators said the district is “much better” than a year ago and positioned for an eventual exit, but they cautioned that the “game’s not over” and urged continued discipline on payroll, benefits and the tracking of customer-service metrics before final exit approval.