Fox C-6 board adopts Amplify K–5 ELA curriculum after two-year pilot

The Fox C-6 School District Board of Education voted Feb. 20 to adopt and purchase the Amplify version 3 English language arts curriculum for kindergarten through fifth grade, following two years of pilot testing and a proposed multi-year implementation plan.

The curriculum decision-maker was Tracy Haggerty, the district’s chief teaching and learning officer, who told the board, “I am proposing to the board that we adopt and purchase this program this evening.” Haggerty described the pilot as spanning two school years, beginning with 65 pilot classrooms last year and growing to 82 this year, with a semester-long pilot in the current year that ran from the start of the school year through January. After discussion, a motion to approve the adoption carried; the motion was made by Travis Littner and seconded by Michael Myers, and the chair stated the motion carried.

District officials said the board’s decision is intended to increase consistency across buildings and align instruction with the science of reading. Haggerty said Amplify 3 emphasizes writing instruction, streamlines pacing (reducing 10 units down to 8), embeds social studies and science content into reading lessons, and includes a “skills strand” for K–2 and an integrated knowledge strand for grades 3–5. She described components that district leaders cited as important: decodable readers, a sound-spelling sequence, assessment tools, digital resources and a research-aligned approach to the five pillars of reading (phonemic awareness, phonics, fluency, vocabulary and comprehension).

Haggerty also described the district’s planned support for teachers if the adoption is approved: an April launch for teacher access; two summer training dates with stipends; a back-to-school training option for those who cannot attend summer sessions; on-site coaching (district staff described a two-day coaching model tailored to each building); an October revisit on a professional development day; and on-demand online professional learning. Haggerty said the district will crosswalk existing supplemental materials (notably the Foundations/Heggerty resources used in K–2) with Amplify to determine how the resources will work together.

Board members and administrators noted community concerns raised earlier in the review process. Haggerty said Amplify version 3 removed or revised several units that had generated objections in earlier versions; she told the board that curriculum staff had reviewed the full program and that she and curriculum coordinator Sarah Killian had read every reader. Haggerty said, “My answer to that would be yes,” when asked whether she believed Amplify 3 was the best option for Fox K–5 instruction based on pilot evidence and review.

District leaders described the purchase as a multiyear commitment: the purchase covers an initial implementation year plus five additional years of consumables, and materials will be supplied each year of the consumables agreement. Officials did not disclose the contract dollar amount at the meeting.

Board members thanked pilot teachers and curriculum staff for the work that led to the recommendation and tied the decision to the district’s Continuous School Improvement Plan (CSIP), which—district leaders said—identified curriculum fidelity and consistency as a top priority through community input and staff surveys.

Implementation steps, professional development plans and the curriculum crosswalk will be returned to the board for additional review and approval as implementation details are finalized. The motion to adopt the Amplify K–5 program passed at the Feb. 20 meeting (motion by Travis Littner, second by Michael Myers; recorded as in favor with no opposition noted).