District presents MTSS framework to guide instruction, intervention and data use this school year

Deputy Superintendent Molly Cohen (joined by Deputy Superintendent Ellen Fritz and other district leaders) presented the Lynn Public Schools’ Multi-Tiered System of Supports (MTSS) framework to the School Committee on Sept. 11, describing the district’s plan to codify tiered supports, align assessment and progress-monitoring practices, expand professional learning, and use collaborative leadership teams to accelerate student learning.

Why it matters: MTSS is the district’s primary instructional framework for organizing universal (Tier 1), targeted (Tier 2) and intensive (Tier 3) supports across academic and social-emotional domains. District leaders said the handbook will provide uniform decision rules and tools so schools can identify students’ instructional needs, monitor progress, and ensure interventions do not replace grade-level instruction.

Main presentation points: Cohen summarized action steps taken since early 2024 (improved data-driven practices, creation of data-champion roles funded by Title I, expansion of an intervention "win" or "what I need" block in schedules, and development of a PLC toolkit). The district plans to use universal screeners, diagnostic assessments, benchmarking and curriculum-embedded checks to tier students and to set decision rules for intervention entry and exit. Cohen emphasized that MTSS also supports accelerated learning (not only remediation), citing a DESE accelerated-learning pilot the district will participate in, and that MTSS should preserve Tier 1 instruction while delivering additional supports.

Leadership and operational changes: the district will implement monthly collaborative action meetings (CAMs) tying school instructional leadership teams (ILTs) to district experts, refine learning-walk and walkthrough protocols and rubrics (including multilingual-learner considerations), and standardize progress-monitoring cut scores for short-cycle interventions. The MTSS handbook is expected to be finalized and released at the end of the month; staff said training and implementation supports will continue through the year.

Committee reaction: members asked about how "what I need" intervention blocks look in elementary and secondary settings, family engagement and student-led data conversations, PBIS versus restorative practices, and how tiered services serve students with IEPs. District leaders described flexible scheduling for intensive services, ongoing family engagement plans tied to student-led conferences, expansion of restorative circle practices and continued attention to inclusion strategies for students with disabilities.

Next steps: release of the MTSS handbook to staff and families, continued principal and teacher professional learning, alignment of assessment schedules and decision rules, and participation in the DESE accelerated-learning pilot in selected schools.

Speakers quoted in this article are limited to those who spoke on the record in the meeting transcript.