Background
- District: Spokane Public Schools
- Leader: Becky Ramsey, Executive Director of Assessment, Analytics, and Program Evaluation
50% reduction
in leadership analysis time to interpret engagement results
5,000 students
across specialized programs served through evidence-based decision-makingChallenge
Following the pandemic, Spokane observed increased student isolation, mental health challenges, and low attendance rates. The district launched the Engage IRL initiative to get students off screens and into extracurricular activities, with a long-term goal of 80% student participation. However, they needed to prove to stakeholders that this investment was actually moving the needle on academic outcomes.
Insight
By using Discover to triangulate student climate surveys with GPA and attendance records, Spokane moved beyond anecdotal evidence. They were able to create "personas" of student cohorts—such as those disconnected versus highly engaged—to understand exactly why certain students were struggling.
What ThoughtExchange partners are saying
“It’s night and day from our previous survey provider, which took months to return our results, and by then, the data was no longer useful. ThoughtExchange allows our administrators to focus on actions sooner; rather than having to dig through the data, it’s readily available to them."
Dr. Tammy Blakely, Executive Director, Student Support Services, Irvine Unified School District
“When you ask open-ended questions, and you have 300 students or 150 staff members respond, it’s challenging to go through those one by one. Having the AI do that for us instantly was so helpful. I could say, ‘Here's the summary. These are the top three things they said, and these are our students’ top concerns.’ ThoughtExchange neatly packaged them so the data is easy to present. I can show a summary of those open-ended questions, where you get to the heart of those concerns."
Caitlyn Kienitz, Communications and Marketing Coordinator, Eastpointe Community Schools, Eastpointe, MI
The Impact
Academic Growth
Proved an 18-point bump in math proficiency and a 14-point bump in reading among engaged students.Attendance
Documented an 18% drop in chronic absenteeism.Governance
Created a data story on a single page that shared the impact of the investment with the community and board members.Why They Chose ThoughtExchange?
Actionable Depth
Becky noted that Discover provides insights ranging from executive level to data that I can share directly with principals for immediate school-level action.The Power of Story
The platform creates visual game-changers, like one-page impact reports, that allow the district to show stakeholders exactly how their funding improves student lives.Evolved Capabilities
After a decade-long relationship, the district continues their partnership because their use of ThoughtExchange evolved from a survey tool into a strategic insight platform.
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