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Greendale School District board adopts Bridges as primary K–5 math curriculum after staff presentation
Summary
After a presentation on piloting and implementation plans, the Greendale School District Board approved the Bridges K–5 elementary math curriculum and authorized use of current budget-year funds for its purchase; one board member recorded a dissenting vote, citing desire for more time and input.
The Greendale School District Board voted to adopt the Bridges K–5 elementary math curriculum and authorized the use of current budget-year funds for its purchase following a presentation from district administrators and an extended question-and-answer period.
Dr. Olsen, introduced by district staff to present the recommendation, described a consensus-based selection process that used piloting, teacher rubrics and a recommendation team made up of instructional support specialists, principals and math interventionists. "We used evidence from pilot teachers, not opinions," Dr. Olsen said, describing a rubric-based review and a "fist of five" consensus protocol the district used to surface concerns and reach a recommendation.
Board members pressed staff on pilot sampling, representativeness and implementation. Staff said about 30 teachers piloted materials—roughly two-thirds of the elementary classroom teachers—and that no site visits to other districts were conducted this cycle; staff offered to share benchmark-district usage in a future district update. "We wanted to use available funds in this budget cycle," Dr. Olsen said, noting a roughly $130,000 budget window that influenced the timeline.
Administrators laid out professional development and fidelity plans, including a May 22 training with Mary Mooney from the Department of Public Instruction and in-person training with Bridges facilitators next school year. They said the district will pair Bridges implementation with a Building Thinking Classrooms book study and fidelity walkthroughs to improve consistent classroom practice.
Supporters on the board said they had seen effective student interaction under Bridges and emphasized the curriculum’s intervention suite and relative affordability. One board member who had piloted a different program said Bridges "does the job," while another asked how the Building Thinking Classrooms approach would be integrated; staff responded that Bridges’ newer editions and aligned PD support that integration.
A motion to adopt the Bridges program and authorize funding in the current budget year was moved and seconded; after a roll call the motion passed, with one board member explicitly stating a "no" vote while praising the staff’s work. The meeting transcript records the motion’s passage but does not provide a complete numerical roll-call tally in the record.
