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Portage High School ELA department recommends HMH 'Into Literature' and related texts; $599,097.59 six‑year cost quoted
Summary
High school ELA department presented a recommendation to adopt HMH 'Into Literature' across grade levels for its reading and writing supports and listed complementary texts for dual‑credit and elective courses; the presentation said the six‑year adoption total is $599,097.59 and adoption will be taken up later on the agenda.
Portage High School teachers on April 14 outlined a proposed English‑language arts adoption that would use Houghton Mifflin Harcourt’s Into Literature digital and print resources across multiple courses and would add supplemental texts for dual‑credit and elective classes.
ELA presenters said Into Literature’s writing studio — with built‑in student writing workflows, plagiarism/AI detection features and teacher feedback tools — was the most persuasive feature for the department. The presenters said the platform includes an extensive text library, SAT/ACT prep, multilingual scaffolds and teacher resources such as lesson plans and recorded trainings.
“We really feel like our big push needs to be not just a reading… it's such an important component of literacy is writing and the expression,” one presenter told the board while describing Into Literature’s writing tools and real‑time monitoring features.
The ELA team also requested several additional texts to meet university dual‑credit requirements and elective needs, including Writing Analytically and a northern field guide to writing for certain dual‑credit classes; staff said one film‑literature text’s newest edition will be released in July and the district would not order that item until the new edition is available.
When asked about professional development, presenters said the district plans to begin staff orientation May 6 and provide additional summer training days and vendor trainings before full implementation. The presenters said they have already held staff meetings to brief teachers on the proposed adoption.
The department chair, Mrs. Newby, summarized the total projected six‑year cost for the adoption at $599,097.59 and reminded the board that the last adoption cycle had relied largely on supplemental materials rather than a full adoption.
The presentation concluded with a note that the adoption is on the board agenda for later action; the transcript excerpt does not include a recorded vote on the adoption in the portion provided.
