Plum Borough leaders recommend new social studies and world language materials; board to vote on procurement and PD timeline

Plum Borough School District administrators and teacher teams presented final recommendations to the board for new social studies K–12 materials and world language resources for grades 7–12.

Why it matters: District staff said many existing resources were 20–30 years old. Moving recommendations in April allows the district to order materials, schedule professional development and begin implementation for the 2025–26 school year.

Review process and recommendations District staff described a multi‑stage review that began with a needs assessment in September, vendor presentations in January, classroom visits and conference calls with neighboring districts in February, and final evaluations and scoring in March. The social studies core and expanded teams reviewed samples from multiple vendors and recommended: - K–4: TCI (teacher‑authored, hands‑on lessons and a strong digital/student workflow for Google Classroom), - Grades 5–6: McGraw Hill (customizable textbook and online components), - Secondary: a mix of vendors for specific courses (McGraw Hill for geography and U.S. history, SABIS/other vendors for interactive U.S. history materials; AP courses aligned to AMSCO, Cengage and other AP publishers as appropriate).

For world languages the team recommended a proficiency‑based program (Cultural Languages/“CLAD” series) for Spanish and a companion program for French; AP Spanish and AP French course resources were recommended from Vista Higher Learning and partner materials.

Implementation timeline and PD Administrators requested board approval in April so ordering could begin and professional development could be scheduled. Staff said they had asked vendors to hold June 2 for kickoff professional development; several vendors required a purchase order or payment to lock PD dates, so the recommendation’s timing is intended to secure PD before the summer and allow teachers time to prepare.

Cost and budget status The administration presented a consolidated budget for the recommended materials and related services at roughly $615,000 (district figure shown to the board); staff said they had already negotiated down the total by approximately $130,000–$150,000 and that the package as presented was “under budget.” Board counsel and the business office said the purchases would likely appear as multiple contracts in the board packet for approval rather than a single line item.

Board action Board members asked detailed questions about digital user experience, Clever and Google Classroom integration, student Chromebook workflows and district data privacy. The administration said the recommended packages include both hard‑copy textbooks and interactive online components, that materials would be accessible via Google Classroom and Clever single sign‑on where appropriate, and that the district would verify data‑privacy and integration details with vendors during procurement.

At the close of the presentation the board voted to move the recommendations forward for formal action (procurement/contracting) so ordering and professional development planning can proceed. Specific contracts and final dollar amounts will return to the board for contract approval.