Superintendent Dr. Janal Darnall of Springfield Public Schools told the school committee that she will present findings from her first 100 days and a roadmap for the district at a community "State of the Schools" address scheduled for 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. tomorrow at Cedars.

Darnall said the event is designed to show “what I’ve discovered during my first 100 days” and to give community members a chance to discuss the results and the district’s plans for moving forward. The committee was told to expect about 250 attendees, student performances, a band conservatory, a student dialogue featuring three students recognized by the state for civics projects, and breakfast and lunch for participants.

Chief Kavan said the event cannot be livestreamed because of technical limitations at Cedars but will be recorded and made available for playback the same day. Chief St. Lawrence described how the meeting will center on 10 printed data slides, each displayed on 3-by-2-foot posters positioned around the room. He said each table will receive slides and use a facilitated protocol to "unpack the data" and leave notes and reactions for staff to review.

The slides will present a through line of student data from early education through assessment, multilingual learner results and postsecondary outcomes, St. Lawrence said. The superintendent and staff emphasized the event aims to make the data accessible to a wide cross section of the community — partners, higher-education leaders and families — and to invite table-level discussion so participants can "see themselves in the work." A QR code will link attendees to the data packet and to sign-up forms for follow-up involvement.

Several committee members praised the format in advance. Mayor Sarno noted long-term gains he attributed to the district, citing graduation and dropout rates discussed during the preview: "We're nearly 86 [percent graduation rate]," he said, adding the dropout rate has fallen from about 14 percent to about 3 percent. The mayor also referenced the district's recent construction and rehabilitation work and said the event should help the community understand current priorities.

The school committee heard the preview as an informational agenda item; no policy votes were taken on the presentation itself. The meeting ended with a motion to adjourn that passed by roll call vote.