District committee recommends new math and science core instructional resources; committee forwards contracts to full board

Nash County Public Schools curriculum staff told committee members on May 15 they used a district rubric, EdReports reviews and the North Carolina Textbook Commission's guidance to vet new core instructional resources and recommended products for math and science to the full board.

Why it matters: adopting new core instructional materials affects classroom curriculum, teacher planning and textbook budgets across multiple grade spans and has multi-year cost implications.

Process and recommendation: District staff described a multi-step selection process that began in fall 2024, included vendor presentations and classroom pilots, and used teacher committee reviews from each grade level to score options. Karen Boone (K-5 math specialist) said the district's K-5 teachers reviewed the top three math vendors and recommended i-Ready mathematics, citing comprehensive teacher supports, a built-in diagnostic that drives individualized plans and an included professional-development component. Staff said the i-Ready selection also produced cost savings compared with at least one alternative; staff did not provide a per-year total in the committee discussion.

Science recommendations: For K-2, staff recommended Science for Us as a digital product that integrates literacy and fits K-2 classroom time constraints; the incremental cost to add Science for Us to the district's existing contract (the presenter identified it as related to Gizmos) was given as $11,497.97. For grades 3-5, staff recommended Discovery Education, a digital product with translation tools and ready-made lessons; the committee was shown a three-year contract total of $217,522.50 (district-provided total for the recommended contract). For grades 6-8, the committee recommended a North Carolina-aligned product (vendor name not specified in the committee transcript) that includes digital access, PDF workbooks, one lab kit per grade per school, professional learning and an early-adoption 20 percent discount; the three-year total shown for that 6-8 science resource was $263,779.60.

Board action: A motion to accept the recommended resources and forward the contract(s) to the full board passed at committee (motion carried; motion by Grama, second by Dutton). Presenters emphasized that final contracts and pricing will be returned to the full board for approval.

Ending: Staff said materials will be delivered to schools for classroom piloting and PLC review as vendors provide access, and that parent advisory council members were invited to review the options during the process. The committee emphasized the use of EdReports and the North Carolina Textbook Commission report as part of the evaluation process.