Staff Spotlight: Instructional Data Analyst, Andrew Bennett
Data. As a school district, a community, and a world, we’ve heard this word more in the past year than maybe ever before. Data drives decision making. It brings understanding. It helps us meet needs.
But where does it come from? And how?
Enter: the Data Man Extraordinaire.
Meet Andrew Bennett, Instructional Data Analyst for Waukee Community School District.
Andrew joined the District Office Team in November of 2019 when he accepted the role of Instructional Data Analyst and transitioned from his position as a teacher at Timberline. Mr. Bennett taught for 12 years total, joining WCSD in 2012 as a teacher for Waukee High School where he taught Physics and helped establish the AP Physics program.
“I majored in physics in college, which is pretty data-heavy. I was always a spreadsheet geek, even as a kid. I remember getting my first car and my dad helping me build a spreadsheet to track the miles per gallon,” he said, “Tracking data to solve problems has always piqued my interest.”
a focus on Equity
Current day, Andrew’s expert-level data skills, heart of service, and passion for education are making a valuable impact for the Waukee Community School District. The Instructional Data Analyst was a newly-added position, and according to Superintendent Dr. Brad Buck, one focused primarily on equity and meeting student needs.
“The design of the role is centered on equity. Specifically, the Instructional Data Analyst is positioned to review data and organize it in ways that are consumable so that we can identify how students are progressing and make adjustments as needed. This is especially important as we work to even better serve all of our students, especially those who are from traditionally underserved groups,” Dr. Buck shared.
The intent of the position and Andrew’s skills have indeed been beneficial in many ways. He has worked closely with building administrators, district leadership, student services, and human resources on various data projects related to equity, health and attendance, assessments, technology distribution, and more.
“Andrew is assisting building administrators by providing them timely and consistent data regarding attendance information, survey results, academic and behavioral statistics, etc. His efforts allow [them] to spend time focusing on students and staff in order to gain important knowledge regarding data for use in helping students grow,” said Dr. Brady Fleming, Associate Superintendent, “Andrew has the technical expertise to extract and interpret data as well as the educational background that allows him to present the information in ways that people understand.”
Many building administrators and instructional coaches were putting together their own versions of data reports manually, which can take a lot of time. Now, they are able to outsource the work to Andrew, and for him, this has been one of the most rewarding pieces of the job.
“The first time someone told me that something I built previously took them two weeks to put together. That was huge for me, knowing that I really am making a difference. Time is such a critical element, and freeing that up for teachers and building leaders to do the important work with students is what it’s all about.”
The work Andrew is doing with data is heavily influenced by his previous role as a teacher. He’s not far removed from the classroom, which is a valuable lens he brings with him into his data analysis role. It helps him approach things practically through ongoing conversations and discovering what’s needed and how to plot a course forward.
handling a Pandemic
In addition to his data work with equity analysis, Andrew’s contributions have been essential in the district’s handling of the COVID-19 pandemic. The tools he built to handle and share data have enabled the district to make decisions that would help ensure healthy and safe learning environments for students and staff.
“As it became increasingly clear we would need a variety of types of data to navigate the pandemic, Andrew artfully pivoted from his role in supporting instructional decision-making to serving as the data leader in implementing the Return to Learn plan. From thoughtfully crafting surveys, to organizing all of the data, to acting as a thought partner on analyzing and communicating the data, his talents have been a true blessing over the last year,” said Dr. Buck.
We can pull out these numbers, but then what do we do with that? It takes working together between different teams and buildings and departments to determine the next right step. Data is essential, but according to Andrew, so are relationships and the ability to collaboratively work together.
“It’s truly amazing what Andrew has done. His talents have made it possible for us to reliably track and graph all of our cases daily, and I can’t imagine how the nurses could do this job without his help,” shared District Nurse Jo Hromatka.
What a valuable addition to the Waukee Community School District, and a vital piece in our work with equity to better meet the needs of our students and serve our families. We are grateful for all the ways Andrew continues to assist in this important work as we continue on this path forward.
Thank you, Andrew. We truly are better together.
