Survey results show major improvement at Fairview

Austin Johnson, The Daily Independent, Ashland, Ky.
Updated ·3 min read

Feb. 9—The Fairview Independent School District has excelled, according to the 2023-24 impact Kentucky Working Conditions Survey.

In all nine categories of the annual faculty and staff survey, the district has made tremendous progress, according to the survey results. Fairview ranked well above average among 171 fellow school districts in the state.

Jackie Risden Hawley, Fairview's superintendent, said the results show that the team is "valued" and "wants to work here."

"It's like, finally!" Hawley said, "All the systems we have put into place to create positive outcomes are working. It's the system changing in Fairview. When you look at these results, it's not one school with high results, one school with low results — it's the entire district."

Fairview had 45 responses — 73.8% of faculty and staff completed the anonymous survey. Among six school districts in northeastern Kentucky, Fairview placed fourth for the highest completion rate, followed by Boyd at 60.7% in fifth and Raceland at 49% in sixth. First-second-third were Russell (89.3%), Greenup County (82.3%) and Ashland (79.9%).

"When you look at it overall at the increases that we have in every single area, there's not an area in which we are below the state average. We are at the top with every area, It's exciting," Hawley said. The survey results show "what the district is doing is working, and shows we are a team where everyone is valued," Hawley said.

Forty-five of Fairview's 61 faculty and staff members completed the survey — 23 of 30 in the elementary school and 22 out of 31 in the high school. In addition, this year's survey garnered 10 more responses than the 2021-22 survey.

In the category of Staff Leadership — surveying respondents on the perception of faculty and staff relationships with school leaders — Fairview saw a 30% favorable increase from the 2021-22 school year, bringing the total to 90%. The state average was 78%.

In the category of Emotional Well-Being — surveying respondents on the perception of educator well-being, efficacy and belonging — results reflected a 32% jump from the 2021-22 school year, at 70%. The state average was 55%.

In the category of Student Behavior — surveying respondents on the perceptions of the management of student behavior in the classroom — there was a 38% leap from the 2019-20 school year, at 79%. The state average was 66%

In School Climate — surveying respondents on perception of the overall social and learning climate of the school — Fairview saw a 36% increase from the 2021-22 school year, at 74%. The state average was 63%.

School Leadership — surveying respondents on perceptions of the school leadership's effectiveness — produced a 27% increase from 2021-22, at 77%. The state average was 67%

In the category of Educating All Students — surveying respondents on faculty perceptions of their readiness to address issues of diversity — Fairview's increase from 2021-22 was 14% (at 74%). The state average was 69%.

In the Resources category, Fairview's results reflected a 24% increase from 2021-22, with the total at 61%. The state average was 50%.

The final two categories were Feedback and Professional Learning, where Fairview also saw significant boosts.

Of 45 responses, 98% (or 44 of 45) surveyed employees responded they are optimistic about the direction the district is heading.

"At one point it was 'hope' that things would be OKAY in our district," Hawley said. "Now they know things are going to be OKAY. That's what trust does. Trust is knowing and they know.

"I am not having to dig for positives in the results; there are so many positives. That right there shows what we are doing is right and it will continue to improve. We have lots of things to be excited about."