COLUMBIA — The Columbia School Board reviewed climate survey results at its meeting Monday night.

The annual survey was sent to parents, staff and students to understand their opinions about learning environments in Columbia Public Schools.

“In any organization, you’re always looking to get better and one way to do that is to gather input from your constituents,” said Michelle Baumstark, Columbia Public Schools chief communications officer.

Baumstark said these survey results are used to develop strategic improvement plans every year.

One big change from last year was an 18-percentage-point increase in the amount of staff who responded that Columbia Public Schools offered wellness programs that improved their health.

“We made some significant investments over the last couple years into wellness programs for our employees,” Baumstark said. “Now we are seeing that come through in our survey results.”

The survey consisted of select-response questions and open ended questions. The results presented at the meeting were district averages.

The survey results show a general satisfaction with school atmosphere.

A large majority of students, 86%, believe they have opportunities to succeed at their school. The same percentage of school staff agree their school fosters a welcoming environment for students.

Most students, 62%, responded that school environment was encouraging. Last year, 64% of students gave this response. Open-ended responses from students revealed a desire to improve inclusivity and fairness, according to board documents.

The board acknowledged that survey responses show discipline policies could be an area for improvement.

Joe Lauchstaedt, Columbia Public Schools data services director, presented the data at the meeting. He said most responses from students expressed frustration with the cell phone ban.

Student open-ended responses suggest a need for more consistent enforcement of rules, according to board documents.

The amount of students who responded “yes” to the statement “bullying is not tolerated at my school” dropped by eight percentage points from last year. Lauchstaedt noted that responses to this question varied by grade level and school.

Survey results from Columbia Public Schools staff show an observed decline in student behavior. Board documents note there is “a need for more effective behavioral management systems.”

Parents’ survey responses show mixed reviews of discipline, with only 19% strongly agreeing that “the discipline policies are fair to all students.” This has risen from previous years, where 13% of parents strongly agreed in 2024 and 17% strongly agreed in 2023.

Teachers are well-regarded, according to the survey results. This has been consistent over the past few years.

A large portion of students responded that they think their teachers are good teachers. Most students also responded that they feel teachers care about them, treat them with respect and take their concerns seriously.

Parents also mainly express satisfaction with teachers, with 84% responding that teachers treat students with respect. About the same percentage of parents have reported this since 2022.

Columbia School Board president John Lyman said he would like to dive deeper into the “disagree” or “strongly disagree” responses. Even if the percentage was not high, Lyman said it is still a decent amount of people unsatisfied.