Freehold Township reports growth in summer ESY program, adopts updated reading assessment and secures additional tutoring funds

Freehold Township School District administrators reported that 342 students attended the district's Extended School Year (ESY) program this summer and that the district has been redesignated as "high performing" by the New Jersey Department of Education following a 6‑month review.

The administrative report said the ESY program runs six weeks and serves students with Individualized Education Programs (IEPs) who meet federally required eligibility criteria. "Our program has grown each year from its inception. We have over 300'' 342 this year," the presenter said, noting staff worked summer schedules and other employees covered as substitutes so programs ran without staffing gaps.

District officials also briefed the board on academic supports funded with targeted state grants. The board was told the district's high‑impact tutoring grant, initiated in the 2023‑24 school year, has been extended each year and that the state recently provided an additional roughly $100,000 for tutoring. The presenter described past grant levels as "upwards of $200,000" for 2023‑24 and roughly $75,000 for 2024‑25 and said the new award falls between those amounts.

Officials described a change in program delivery that increased participation: instead of scheduling tutoring before or after school, the district shifted tutoring into the school day during station‑rotation or small‑group instruction. "Our attendance rate went up to over 80%," the presenter said, and administrators reported measurable gains for students who attended.

The curriculum committee recommended and the board approved replacing the district's out‑of‑date FMP benchmark reading assessment with a new edition from Heinemann. A committee speaker said the updated FMP tool adds foundational literacy components not present in the prior edition and permits teachers to assess phonics, phonemic awareness, fluency and comprehension in one instrument. "This is the only reading assessment, formal reading assessment, that we do as a district that requires teachers to listen to kids read," the committee speaker said, arguing that teacher‑administered listening provides richer information than only paper or computer tests.

Committee members described early evidence that the in‑school tutoring model plus curriculum adjustments helped reduce learning gaps for students identified two to three years below grade level. The district plans to continue the in‑school tutoring model and use the new benchmark to monitor student reading skills.

Board members asked about capacity for tutors and how students were identified; the committee speaker said staffing and candidate pools were sufficient and that the district refined selection through its MTSS (Multi‑Tiered System of Supports) process. The board also approved a separate agenda item appropriating additional state aid to support high‑impact tutoring as listed on the consent agenda.

The district's designation as "high performing" was described as the result of meeting at least 80% of the weighted indicators in the state CUSAC review process. The presenter said the district previously had been at 78% after the state declined to retroactively apply a revised weighting formula. "I'm pleased to inform you your district has satisfied at least 80% of the weighted indicators in each of the five areas of the New Jersey CUSAC review process and has been designated as high performing," the presenter said.

Board members and committee chairs said they would monitor results in the fall and report progress under the board's committee updates.

Ending: The board approved the reading assessment RFP and the appropriation of additional tutoring funds as part of a consent package later in the meeting; administrators said tutoring will remain school‑day focused in the coming year to maintain the higher participation rates.