At a board work session, Shannon Wilcox outlined an early-literacy framework that the district says is built to improve reading outcomes in kindergarten through third grade and beyond. The district's headline target is to have 65 percent of students at or above benchmark on Acadience Reading by the end of third grade by 2030.

Wilcox described a multi-tiered approach that couples workforce development, curriculum alignment and data-driven interventions. "Reading is not a natural process," she told the board, summarizing the rationale behind the district's investments in teacher training and structured reading routines.

The district emphasized four implementation pillars: teacher content knowledge, a guaranteed and viable Tier 1 curriculum, a set of Tier 2 intervention programs, and ongoing school-level supports. Wilcox said 208 district educators have completed LETRS (Language Essentials for Teachers of Reading and Spelling) professional development, which the district uses to build teachers' knowledge of the "science of reading." That training is paired with a K 2 scope-and-sequence and daily "word knowledge routines" that teachers can implement in-class.

Assessment alignment is central to the plan. Officials cited three assessment tools used to guide instruction and intervention: Acadience (the district's benchmark measure), district common interim assessments (CIAs), and Amira (a digital practice/assessment tool). Wilcox said the district has set an 80 percent proficiency target on CIAs for K'2 students and a goal that 65 percent of grades 1' demonstrate typical or better growth on Acadience.

For students who do not meet benchmarks, the district uses targeted Tier 2 programs. Wilcox listed UFLY (for kindergarten), the 95% Group curriculum (for first through third grade), Read Live and other interventions. She said each school is allocated support staff (ESPs) to run small-group interventions; the district estimates that ESPs can run about three intervention groups per day, serving roughly 1,200 K'3 students districtwide in small groups of about five students each.

Wilcox described additional implementation supports: individualized data dashboards for teachers (item-by-item and student-level views), regular classroom observations and feedback cycles, and a professional development cadence tied to formative data. The presentation stressed that instruction and intervention must be coordinated across schools; Wilcox said the district has worked to make curricular pacing consistent so students who move between schools are not left behind.

Board members and staff discussed family engagement and supports for summer reading; Wilcox noted district and statewide funding sources have helped provide books and digital reading resources, and that schools use nightly or seasonal take-home book distributions and library/digital options to increase access.

Wilcox closed by reiterating the hinge-point rationale: the district focuses on K'3 because research and local data indicate early reading proficiency strongly affects later outcomes. "What we do today has a significant impact on how our students perform tomorrow," she said.

Ending: The board took the presentation for information and asked staff to return with updates and supporting materials; superintendents and school leaders will continue school-level implementation and reporting.