District staff gave the Burlington Area School District Board an overview of how the district has implemented Act 20, the state reading law emphasizing phonics-based literacy instruction.

Staff said the district adopted the Amplify CKLA curriculum and began using AIMSwebPlus in 2024 as the statewide literacy screener. Personal reading plans (PRPs) for students are being documented and communicated to families using EduCLIMBER. Staff described a multi-year professional development effort: the district certified teachers through “keys to literacy” training, trained building-level leaders as trainers, and intends to complete required training for K–4 teachers within a defined timeframe.

Presenters noted a state reimbursement process for approved curriculum purchases; the district received a partial reimbursement (presenters described it roughly as a 50% reimbursement for the curriculum purchase), but other state funding that was discussed at the time the law passed has not yet materialized. The board was also briefed about additional Act 20 requirements: a third-grade retention policy already approved by the district and scheduled to take effect in 2027, and a statutory requirement to offer a summer intensive program for students who end the year on a PRP and did not meet their PRP goals.

District staff also flagged a national renorming of AIMSwebPlus benchmarks that changed percentile cut points and affected reported distribution of student performance. Staff said the renorming is a national technical change rather than an immediate reflection of student learning gains or losses.

Board members asked about funding and staff time. Staff characterized the implementation as a substantial lift—many hours of teacher PD, curriculum rollout, and new assessment work—but said the district prioritized the changes as instructionally necessary.

No formal board action was required; the presentation was informational and staff were asked to continue implementation planning, family communications, and summer programming design in the coming months.