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Norris instructional specialists report progress on MTSS, Nebraska Reads Act interventions
Summary
District instructional specialists told the board they have refined tiered reading interventions, used branching‑minds benchmarking, and are implementing Nebraska Reads Act Individual Reading Improvement Plans where students are flagged.
Norris School District 160’s two instructional specialists described work this year focused on multi‑tiered systems of support (MTSS), progress monitoring and compliance with the Nebraska Reads Act.
Heather Terry and Darian Carney said they have spent the school year building a districtwide framework for tier‑2 interventions, aligning specific interventions to the reading or math skills students lack and setting clearer protocols for placement and dismissal. They said administrators and teacher teams are meeting quarterly to review student progress and make program moves based on skills data rather than only test percentiles.
Terry told the board she works daily with benchmarking tools including MAP Fluency, MAP Growth and the state’s NCAS tests, and that the district uses the branching‑minds platform to track students’ movement between tier categories. She explained that kindergarten through third grade have different testing and flagging norms — for instance, second graders are often flagged when they move from first‑grade orally supported assessments to second‑grade independent reading — and that those differences can cause spikes in flagged students.
She said the Nebraska Reads Act requires identification and a written Individual Reading Improvement Plan (IRIP) for students the state considers below grade level; the district is tracking how many students are flagged, monitoring progress, and sending required notices to families. Terry said kindergarten IRIPs in recent months fell from eight flagged students in the fall to two after interventions, and that overall the number of students in tier‑2 interventions is shrinking as more students move to green (on‑grade) benchmarks.
Carney described her work on teacher onboarding, coaching and a three‑year retention plan. She said she spends significant time co‑teaching lessons, modeling strategies and supporting new teachers through monthly roundtables. Both specialists said they are piloting interventions in the middle school and refining placement criteria for students in need.
Board members asked about services for advanced readers and about how Title I supports are integrated; Terry said Title I uses compatible programs (WonderWorks alongside Wonders instruction) and remains part of the intervention mix. Ending: The specialists told the board they will return with routine quarterly updates on progress monitoring, program alignment and any changes needed under state rules.
