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Orange County School Board adopts McGraw Hill StudySync for grades 6–12
Summary
The board approved a $330,901 adoption of McGraw Hill StudySync for grades 6–12, including student materials, online access and no-cost professional development, after a multi-month review aligned to the Virginia Literacy Act.
The Orange County School Board voted to adopt McGraw Hill StudySync as the division's English language arts program for grades 6–12, approving a contract price the board was told is $330,901.
Board members and staff said the adoption followed a multi-month committee review that included teacher pilot work, rubric evaluations and a public display of materials. Monica Weaver, humanities coordinator, said the committee used the Virginia Department of Education rubric plus district-specific criteria for English learners, special education and gifted populations. "We decided that we would like to present McGraw Hill study sync as our the program that we would like to adopt," Weaver said during the board presentation.
The administration told the board the package includes hardback student texts, class sets for classrooms, online access to the full program, integrated writing and novel collections, progress monitoring tools and teacher materials. Staff said McGraw Hill agreed to provide the professional development and teacher materials at no added cost. A staff member summarized the price as a "very fair price," given the inclusion of teacher PD.
Board members said teachers had taken a leading role in the selection. Dr. Honecker and other staff described a process that began with three vendor submissions in December, followed by committee review, classroom pilots in February and March, and a final committee recommendation in April.
A motion to adopt StudySync passed on a voice vote after a board member moved approval and members answered "aye." The board chair closed the item by directing staff to begin procurement and curriculum planning so materials could be in place before the next curriculum cycle.
The board and staff emphasized teachers would still adapt curriculum locally; speakers said the program is not intended for AP or dual-enrollment courses and that the online platform offers supports such as translation and adjustable reading levels for students needing accommodations.
The board will place final procurement paperwork on the division's normal purchasing schedule and said staff would follow up with details about distribution and training schedules.
The vote came during the board's regular meeting on March 26, 2025.
