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District previews summer student programs and summer professional development; Science of Reading attestation planned
Summary
District staff presented an expanded set of summer programs for students — including Camp Wolverine, elementary extended learning and high-school credit recovery — and a multi-part professional development plan for teachers to support the state-required Science of Reading attestation due by Sept. 1.
District staff outlined summer student programs and a multi-week professional development schedule aimed at aligning instruction with the state’s Science of Reading requirements.
Director Rick Corella described the student offerings, which include an Elementary Learning Program (ELP) running July 14–Aug. 1 at 70 Ninth Street Elementary, Camp Wolverine Junior co-located with ELP under a Boys & Girls Club recreational contract, a staggered Elementary E&L session after a kindergarten transition jamboree, and multiple high-school sports, enrichment and credit-recovery offerings funded in part by a 21st Century grant. Corella said Camp Wolverine Senior and the credit recovery and prep programs will operate at Niagara Falls High School and at the district’s two prep schools; some P-TECH and mechanical engineering technology courses will also use SUNY Niagara campus space because of specialized equipment needs.
Corella said the elementary ELP application goes live on Monday, April 14, with a May 30 deadline for elementary program registration; credit-recovery and high-school postings follow once the high school team reviews 30-week grade reports to determine course needs and staffing.
The board also heard a detailed slate of summer professional learning sessions designed to prepare staff for an attestation the district must complete by 5 p.m. on Sept. 1, showing alignment with the Science of Reading pillars and required trainings for pre-K–grade 3. Instructional leaders outlined a multi-part summer calendar: onboarding and foundational courses in phonemic awareness and phonics (using Wilson Language materials in K–3), three-cycle workshops covering the six pillars (phonological awareness/phonics, oral language, vocabulary, fluency, comprehension), online book-study professional learning communities, and partner workshops through Erie 1 BOCES on explicit instruction and evidence-based practices that span pre-K through grade 12.
Instructional staff said the offerings address onboarding for new teachers as well as deeper training for experienced staff; the district intends to present the final attestation and supporting documentation at a June meeting so board members can review it before staff submits the Sept. 1 attestation.
Superintendent Mark Laurrie and other staff emphasized the board-funded components of the summer student programs and thanked the board for the budget allocation that makes the programs possible. The board was told that additional short-duration STEM and one-day camps may be added and will be reported monthly.
