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Rye City School District previews curriculum, literacy, IB and SEL priorities in 2025–26 budget
Summary
Superintendent Dr. Byrne and curriculum staff outlined programmatic priorities for the 2025–26 Curriculum, Instruction and Assessment budget, highlighting expanded social-emotional learning, International Baccalaureate course launches, continued literacy work and initial plans for classroom AI guidance and professional learning.
Superintendent Dr. Byrne opened the March 11 board meeting with an overview of the district's continuing work on the proposed 2025'26 budget and introduced the Curriculum, Instruction and Assessment presentation for the district.
District curriculum staff told the board the 2025'26 budget for curriculum and instruction focuses on four operating standards: excellence in teaching and learning, instructional innovation, student physical and mental health, and research-based professional development. The presentation outlined planned expansions to kindergarten'grade 5 Responsive Classroom training, continued rollout of the K'12 social-emotional learning (SEL) program and a proposed K'12 director of school counseling and student wellness to oversee SEL implementation and counseling alignment across buildings.
The board heard that the district intends to fully implement Responsive Classroom in K'5 classrooms next year, with three days of professional learning, and to expand DBT (dialectical behavior therapy) lessons in the middle school; a student-and-staff school climate survey is planned as a baseline measure in late fall. Curriculum staff said the district will continue literacy work, monitoring the UFLI K'2 phonics pilot and creating a grammar scope and sequence for grades 3'5. Middle- and high-school staff will complete a writing continuum for grades 6'12.
High-school academic changes outlined in the presentation include adding the International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme (DP) in grades 11'12 and expanding AP Capstone to add AP Research next year. The district said two additional teachers are included in the budget for IB coursework'one in social studies to support a high-demand business management course and one for computer science to staff an IB computer science course and stabilize other CS offerings, including cybersecurity.
Staff also described how AI instruction will be embedded at several grades: a sixth-grade Skills for Success course, a seventh/eighth-grade crosswalk that connects ELA, social studies and library media, and a reworked ninth-grade composition course. The district scheduled a more extensive board presentation on AI guidelines for April 8 and a parent university on AI for April 23. Curriculum leaders said they plan phased professional learning for teachers before introducing tools to students and will follow state data-privacy rules when evaluating vendors.
Board members asked about implementation details: how Responsive Classroom training will be scheduled (conference days plus two August sessions), how IB staffing will balance other course obligations, and how AI instruction will reach students who missed early rollouts. Presenters said some solutions under consideration include short seminars during flexible periods and targeted faculty development, and emphasized the work will be iterative.
The presentation concluded with a reminder that additional budget segments (technology, athletics, facilities) are scheduled for March 25.
