GRESHAM, Ore. — The Gresham‑Barlow School District board approved two major literacy purchases on Wednesday as part of ongoing curriculum adoption work.

The board approved a four‑year purchase of the i‑Ready diagnostic and personalized instruction package in the amount of $440,841.80. Staff said i‑Ready is an adaptive reading diagnostic that helps teachers identify student strengths and create individualized instructional paths; staff noted research tying i‑Ready scores to Smarter Balanced performance. The district will continue to use i‑Ready alongside its current literacy adoption and said Spanish lessons are available in the package.

The district also moved to expand its previously authorized purchase of 95% Group materials. Instructional staff previously adopted 95% Group as a phonics strand and intervention for grades 3–5; the board approved increasing the prior authorization to a not‑to‑exceed amount of $420,000 to cover student workbooks, teacher digital presentation slides and replacements for worn intervention materials over the literacy adoption cycle.

Both purchases support the district’s multi‑year literacy adoption and will fund online diagnostic tools and classroom phonics resources. The items were presented as action items and passed after board motions and seconds; procurement and curriculum staff will manage contracts and materials distribution.

Why it matters: The purchases are part of multi‑year efforts to improve early reading outcomes by pairing diagnostic tools with structured phonics instruction. Staff said these materials are necessary to implement the current literacy adoption over the next several years.

Implementation: Curriculum and instructional teams will schedule licensing, ordering of printed workbooks, teacher supports and training ahead of fall implementation.