Brentwood officials outline expanded MTSS supports, pilot programs and staffing requests for elementary schools

Annie, a staff member of the Brentwood Union Free School District, told the Board of Education on Monday that the district is expanding a multi-tiered system of supports (MTSS) for elementary students, combining universal screening, targeted interventions and social-emotional strategies while requesting additional staff to sustain the changes.

The presentation outlined why the district is moving from prior, grade-specific approaches to a districtwide MTSS aligned with the Graduation Plus vision. Annie said MTSS “is for all students” and described three recurring requirements: regular team meetings to review data, diagnostic screening three times a year and frequent progress monitoring.

District staff are using i-Ready diagnostic and growth measures to set individualized goals. Annie said the district gives universal diagnostic assessments three times a year “because they are objective, because they are standardized,” and that staff plan interventions based on students’ trajectories. She described a tiered model in which approximately 70% of students are in core differentiated instruction, with the remainder needing strategic or intensive supports; Annie said the district currently has a slightly higher share of students receiving academic intervention services than the typical research profile.

Annie described classroom- and school-level practices the district is piloting: a new ELA reading program (not named in the presentation), three different math programs currently piloted by about 54 teachers, new project-based science units and additional interventions being introduced in special education, including a program the speaker identified as Inspire. She said the district is piloting a platform to document student support plans and is expanding professional learning so teams “know the rules of engagement” for MTSS implementation.

Behavior and attendance supports were a major focus. Since the pandemic the district has rolled out Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (PBIS) with age-appropriate expectations (“Are you safe? Are you helpful? Are you kind?” for primary learners; “Are you respectful? Are you responsible?” for intermediate grades). Annie described training for bus drivers and other staff, PBIS newsletters sent home, and administrative reports that allow principals to monitor attendance by homeroom.

Annie cited school-level results the district is using to argue for continued investment. She said Hemlock Park doubled its achievement level for students with disabilities based on 2024–25 state data and that the school’s Core Subject Performance Index increased; the speaker also noted the district’s state test participation rose to about 85% or greater in most schools and singled out one school at nearly 99% participation. Kindergarten center chronic absenteeism rates were reported to have fallen (one center from 32.5% to 21.2%; Pine Park from 36.2% to 19.2%). The presentation noted over 200 students now participate in the Brentwood Youth Mentoring Program and that about 70 teachers are delivering high-dosage tutoring.

To sustain and scale MTSS, Annie asked the board to consider specific staffing additions and replacements. She said retirements total 21 staff (16 general‑education retirements among them) and that the district needs to replace roughly 18 positions and hire for growth. The staffing requests she listed included four full-time behavior specialists, additional interventionist seats for smaller schools (bringing Southeast, Loretta Park and Laurel Park to three interventionists each), two speech teachers for the youngest grades, two instructional/psych coaching positions, an additional psychologist and a school counselor at the kindergarten level, three library media specialists to expand weekly library/media instruction in grades 1–2, and extra music, art and physical‑education staffing tied to enrollment growth. Annie said some investments (notably at Hemlock Park) were funded by a School Improvement Grant (SIG), which she credited with enabling rapid gains.

Board members and audience members questioned implementation details, including who attends school-level MTSS meetings and how the district determines when to pursue further evaluation. Annie said schools use three meeting types: school-level data meetings (principals, district coordinators, counselors), content-area huddles (interventionists and classroom teachers) and individualized 1:1 meetings (principal, school psychologist, parent and child). She said parents are welcome at meetings. On evaluation timing, the district gauges response to instruction using intervention-based measures and formative assessments and typically looks for multiple data points—Annie said “you probably want at least 12 data points” before concluding an intervention is not working and moving to next steps; she also referenced a 6–12 data‑point window used to norm progress monitoring.

No formal board action on staffing was taken during the workshop. The only recorded formal action was a motion to adjourn at 7:15 p.m., moved by Brandon Garcia, seconded by Julia Burgos and approved by voice vote. Annie closed by inviting parents to speak individually with curriculum coordinators for their children’s diagnostic reports.

The presentation and questions reflected an implementation phase: the district is documenting processes, piloting curriculum and assessment platforms, and seeking board consideration of targeted hires and funds to sustain MTSS across 11 elementary schools.