Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Curriculum topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
D97 leaders outline curriculum rollouts, math pilots and new assessment suite
Summary
District leaders presented core instruction priorities for 2025–26: K–5 ELA rollout of adopted programs, math pilots at two elementary schools, middle-school resource reviews, a Renaissance assessment rollout and plans for MTSS, SEL universal screening and advisory work.
District leaders presented an overview of core instruction priorities and implementation plans for the 2025–26 school year at the Sept. 16 Board of Education meeting, including K–5 ELA rollout, elementary math pilots, middle-school resource reviews and a new district assessment suite intended to drive targeted instruction.
Highlights: Dr. Ramirez told the board the district completed a multi-year resource review for K–5 English language arts and has adopted three programs for rollout this year: Amplify, CKLA and Camino (year one of implementation). “This is year 1 of our rollout of this resource,” Dr. Ramirez said, adding the district will provide initial professional learning and follow-up coaching.
Math: The district will pilot two math resources at Longfellow and Holmes elementary schools — Amplify Desmos Math and Math Learning Center Bridges — with the intention of recommending a single districtwide math resource after the pilot year.
Middle school and social studies: The board heard that Discovery Education social studies is in use after a pilot last year; district staff said initial professional learning is underway.
Assessments and MTSS: The district has begun rolling out the Renaissance assessment suite across grades to supply both nationally normed and standards-based measures. Staff described the assessment data as the backbone of expanded "WIN" blocks (What I Need) to provide targeted intervention and enrichment within MTSS cycles (6–12 weeks). Leaders said the district will update acceleration rubrics to align with Renaissance data and use data walls and progress monitoring to track student growth.
Student services and SEL: Student services leaders described priorities for collaborative development of 504 plans and IEPs and involving students and families in progress monitoring. District staff said they are exploring a universal mental-health screening tool following the governor’s mandate; the tool is meant to identify students who would benefit from supports and not to diagnose students.
Middle-school advisory: Staff said they will explore an advisory model designed to build community and intentionally include students who may not be reached by traditional student-council structures.
Why it matters: The combination of adopted instructional resources, piloted math programs, and the Renaissance assessment suite is intended to provide consistent curriculum and data to guide instruction and interventions across the district’s 10 schools.
Speakers and roles: Presenters included Patrick Robinson (assistant superintendent for elementary), Luisa Leon (superintendent of middle schools), Tawana Lawrence (senior director of teaching and learning), Donna Middleton and Tracy Hamm (student services), Dr. Ramirez (curriculum/instruction lead), Emily Grisham (director of teaching and learning) and Mary Anne Rayfield (Lincoln principal), each describing how their area will support the work.
Board response and next steps: Board members asked for details about middle-school data dives and how the new assessment suite will be explained to families; staff said they plan a family report packet from Renaissance plus a district letter to explain changes. The district will return with updates throughout the year and recommendations following pilot years.
