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Adel DeSoto Minburn Community School District

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January Parent and Family Update

Posted Date: 01/13/26 (08:56 AM)
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The ADM Community Schools logo features bold white letters on a black background.

January Parent and Family Update

1/13/2026

ADM Families,

I hope you had a restful and enjoyable break and were able to spend meaningful time with family and friends. As we return, it’s hard to believe we are at the midpoint of the 2025–26 school year. Time continues to move quickly, and spring will be here before we know it. With the start of the new year we are focused on making every day count and ensuring all students continue to learn at high levels! As a reminder our 2025-26 Wildly Important Goal is to decrease PS-11 grade students identified as “not yet proficient” in reading or ELA on the identified grade level state assessment from 12% to 10% by June 1, 2026.
 
ADM Community School District logo with a tiger mascot and text "#3 Highest Performing K-12 School District in Iowa!".

ADM Community School District Ranked 3rd Highest Performing K-12 District in Iowa!

The Adel DeSoto Minburn (ADM) Community School District is proud to share that it has earned a “High Performing” rating on the Iowa School Performance Profiles and ranks as the third highest performing K-12 school district in the state of Iowa.

ADM is one of only two districts statewide serving more than 2,000 students where all school buildings achieved a “High Performing” rating or higher, a testament to the district's consistent excellence across every level.

Over the past several years ADM has been laser-focused on delivering real results for students. Thanks to the dedication of ADM’s teachers, staff, students, and families, the district has seen remarkable gains in achievement. 

  • 95% of ADM High School Students (Grade 9-11) Proficient on the State English Language Arts Assessment
  • 93% of ADM Middle School Students (Grades 7-8) Proficient on the State English Language Arts Assessment
  • 88% of All Students (Grades 3-11) Proficient on the State English Language Arts Assessment

By adopting high-quality instructional materials across all grade levels, providing evidence-based interventions for struggling learners, and implementing multi-tiered systems of support in every building, ADM has transformed outcomes. 

Just a few years ago, 25% of ADM students in grades PS-12 were not proficient in reading and writing; last year, that figure dropped to 12%. ADM’s mission declares that all students will learn at high levels and the district is serious about making this a reality.
 
A calendar page displays '2026-27 ADM Academic Calendar Approved' with a red 'APPROVED' stamp.

2026-27 ADM Academic Calendar Approved

On Monday night, the ADM Board of Education approved the 2026-27 academic calendar. All elements of the approved academic calendar remain the same as what was shared with families in December.

 

School Safety and Security

The safety of our students and staff has been and continues to be our top priority. The start of the new year is a good time for a few reminders to be vigilant in our safety and security practices at ADM. Below are a few reminders about safety and security at ADM.

  • Continued Increased Law Enforcement Presence: ADM families will continue to see increased law enforcement throughout all ADM buildings, with School Resource Officers Monte Keller and Joel Delaney supporting all buildings and retired Police Chief Gordy Shepherd providing additional security services.
  • Secured Entries: All schools have secured buzzed entries. ADM Middle School and High School continue to implement strict policies and procedures for entry to the building for before school practices and activities. 
  • New Video Surveillance System: All ADM school buildings have a new upgraded video surveillance system with increased coverage and functionality. 
  • New Door Alarm Notification Systems: All ADM school buildings have new door alarm notification systems to improve security at all potential entry points at all buildings.
  • Reporting Threats: Families are reminded that they can report possible threats to the safety of students or school personnel on school grounds or at school activities by calling 911, using Safe + Sound Iowa or the ADM Thread Reporting Form. Local law enforcement would like to remind students, parents, and community members to call 911 or contact the school directly with information about threats or concerns – especially during school business hours. This enables local law enforcement to promptly investigate threats and concerns. Use the following link to learn more: Report a Threat
 
ADM Community Schools logo with text 'Focus On Learning' and 'Board Meeting Reports'.

Focus on Learning: PK-12 Science Curriculum Update

Each month the ADM School Board receives a “Focus on Learning” report at the monthly School Board meeting. At January's Board Meeting, ADM Assistant Superintendent Travis Wilkins provided an update about the district's ongoing work related PK-12 science curriculum revision. Use the following link to review the slide deck and learn more: PK-12 Science Curriculum Update Focus on Learning
 

Parent Square Communication Tools Coming to ADM

ADM will be launching a new unified communications platform called ParentSquare for the 2026-27 school year. This resource has been implemented with wide success in many central Iowa school districts and we are excited to bring this platform to ADM families and staff.

ParentSquare is designed to replace multiple existing, less-coordinated communication methods such as Campus Messenger, School Messenger, email groups with parents, and various third-party apps being used by teachers and coaches to communicate with groups, individual students, or families. 

ParentSquare aims to simplify communication for teachers, coaches, and families by consolidating all student and family communication, classroom communication, and extracurricular communication into one place. Parents can control how and when they receive communication, and the platform offers features such as two-way translation, volunteer sign-ups, donation sign-ups, conference sign-ups, newsletters, and more.

Implementation efforts at ADM are already underway in preparation for the 2026-27 school year. To support implementation next school year, select teachers have been identified to pilot the use of ParentSquare this winter. If your child is in a classroom that will be piloting ParentSquare you will receive an email with more information from your teacher. These teachers will be piloting ParentSquare to help the district learn about implementing the platform and to support the full roll-out of Parent Square for the 2026-27 school year.

Look for more information in the months ahead about this new resource coming to ADM!
 
Have a great day!

Greg Dufoe
ADM Superintendent