Saginaw Intermediate School District (ISD) has completed its first organization-wide engagement and culture assessment in partnership with Humanex Ventures, continuing the district’s multi-year commitment to transparency, accountability, and continuous improvement in service of students.
SAGINAW ISD ORGANIZATION-WIDE HUMANEX STAFF ENGAGEMENT RESULTS FOR 2025-26
Over the past three years, Saginaw ISD has been intentional about listening to staff and learning from engagement data. After two years partnering with Gallup, the district made a strategic decision in its third year to transition to Humanex. This shift reflects a move beyond survey results alone and toward team-based action and practical improvement, grounded in the belief that a positive staff experience directly supports meaningful outcomes for students and the school districts Saginaw ISD serves.
The Humanex survey was conducted during the first week of November 2025, with 74 percent of staff participating. This level of participation provides a broad, representative snapshot of the day-to-day experience of working at Saginaw ISD.
All survey responses were fully anonymous. Neither Humanex nor Saginaw ISD leadership has access to individual responses. Instead, leaders receive summarized data at the team, department, and organization levels. This approach protects individual privacy while allowing Saginaw ISD to identify patterns, strengths, and opportunities for growth.
A key benefit of the Humanex model is that it measures progress internally over time rather than comparing organizations to external benchmarks. Because intermediate school districts operate differently from traditional K–12 systems, Saginaw ISD is measured against itself year over year. This allows the district to focus on meaningful growth and improvement that reflects its unique structure, mission, and service model. Because this is Saginaw ISD’s first year using Humanex, the results serve as a baseline for tracking progress in future years.
Humanex was selected for its hands-on, action-oriented approach, cost-efficient service model, and experience working with intermediate school districts across Michigan. In addition to survey analysis, Humanex provides on-site facilitation and structured action planning to help organizations turn feedback into clear, practical next steps.
Humanex is currently working directly with departments and leadership teams to facilitate action-planning sessions, where teams review their specific results, identify priority areas, and develop clear, practical next steps. In some cases, supervisors have already begun scheduling these sessions or incorporating the work into existing team meetings.
“At the heart of this work is a focus on staff engagement and experience,” said Dr. Jeffrey Collier, Superintendent of Saginaw ISD. “When our people feel supported, heard, and equipped to do their best work, students benefit. Creating a great place to work is essential to attracting and retaining talented professionals who serve students, families, and school districts across our county every day.”
As part of the district’s commitment to transparency and accountability, organization-wide results were shared publicly with the Saginaw ISD Board of Education at its January 20 meeting. In addition, the Superintendent’s Impact Forum will meet with Humanex to align on shared goals and metrics that strengthen staff experience across the organization.
This work directly supports Saginaw ISD’s Board-approved Strategic Compass, specifically Goal 2: Fortify an organizational culture of transparency, accountability, and continuous improvement. By listening to staff, acting on feedback, and committing to ongoing improvement, Saginaw ISD is continuing to strengthen its organization to serve students, families, and partner districts with excellence and stability.
ABOUT SAGINAW INTERMEDIATE SCHOOL DISTRICT
Saginaw Intermediate School District (ISD) is an educational service agency that provides effective and innovative leadership, services, resources, and programs throughout Saginaw County. Saginaw ISD provides career and technical education, early childhood, finance, human resources, instruction, pupil accounting, special education, technology, and transportation services. In addition, Saginaw ISD operates multiple educational programs to meet the unique needs of students ages birth to 26 across Saginaw County, including: Hartley Outdoor Education Center, Head Start/Early Head Start and Great Start to Readiness Programs, Great Lakes Bay Early College, Saginaw County Juvenile Detention Center School, and Special Education Center Programs.
Saginaw ISD serves 12 local school districts, four public school academies, and 22 non-public schools, with a total enrollment of approximately 26,000 students. Public school districts supported include: Birch Run Area Schools, Bridgeport-Spaulding Community School District, Carrollton Public Schools, Chesaning Union Schools, Frankenmuth School District, Freeland Community School District, Hemlock Public School District, Merrill Community Schools, Saginaw Public School District, Saginaw Township Community Schools, St. Charles Community Schools, and Swan Valley School District.
MEDIA CONTACT
Coty Kuschinsky - Saginaw ISD Chief of Staff and Communications Director