WUSD Governing Board: Galileo testing, students of the month, more

WILLIAMS, Ariz. — What is Galileo? How does it benefit teachers and students?

Williams High School Principal Dr. Connie Hargis was on hand at the Williams Unified School District board meeting, Sept. 8, to answer those questions.

Galileo was introduced to the district in 2022. Its purpose is to assess the knowledge level of each student in a variety of subjects. All students in the district are tested.

"Galileo enables teachers to do the hard work of teaching, and not spend so much time analyzing student knowledge," Hargis said.

The tests vary by grade level, and are administered to students at the beginning, middle, and end of the year. English language arts, math and science are covered on the test.

"The test results do drive what a teacher does in the classroom," Hardis said. "The results do help us, as teachers, to understand where students are, and what we need to as educators to support them. The second test lets us know if we're where we need to be, or which students are at risk".

Parents who would like to have more information on the Galileo testing system, may contact Hargis at (928) 635-4474, or middle school principal Tammara Ragsdale at (928) 635-4428.

In other governing board business, the WUSD Governing Board recognized the September employee of the month and students of the month.

Carol Lewis was selected as the September Employee of the Month.

Students of the month included: Pre-K - Hayden Perduehas, Kindergarten - Nicolas Gomez, First Grade - Makenna Angulo, Second Grade - Anthony Charlez, Third Grade - Carsen Brittain, Fourth Grade - Eva Pope, Fifth Grade - Jacob Fichtelman, Sixth Grade - Avery Valdez and Kelly Gonzalez, 10th Grade - Ryan Leake, 11th Grade - Liliana Vazquez.

Superintendent Eric Evans also presented a report on the district's custodial services, along with a recommendation that the district look into obtaining a mechanized system for floor cleaning. The motorized floor cleaners would significantly reduce employee hours needed to complete the work, allowing custodial staff to spend more time in other needed areas.