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CCPS presents second‑year update on math pathways and new instructional resources
Summary
Dr. Emily Stains told the April 14 work session the division expanded math pathways to include on‑grade and accelerated options, added intervention resources and a required summer bridge course to preserve acceleration to Algebra I; 97% of surveyed teachers report weekly use of division materials.
Dr. Emily Stains, director of secondary curriculum development and support, told the Chesterfield County School Board on April 14 that the district is in its second year of implementing new math pathways that offer both on‑grade and accelerated options while maintaining routes for students to reach Algebra I in middle school.
"By offering both ongrade level and accelerated options, we give families the flexibility to choose the math pathway that best meets their child's needs each year," Stains said. She highlighted a required summer bridge course for students in Math 7 who wish to accelerate to Algebra I in eighth grade; the district provided two free options, in‑person and asynchronous virtual, to avoid gaps in essential content.
Stains reviewed instructional supports added during rollout: Bridges intervention kits for elementary classrooms, Imagine Math and Imagine Math Facts at middle school, an additional math interventionist to support schools, and a new resource described as 'math space' currently used by nine schools as the division moves toward broader implementation in 2026–27.
She told the board the division’s curriculum team partnered with special education and gifted teams to align resources to the 2023 Virginia standards of learning and that teacher feedback is driving refinement. Stains cited survey results showing 97% of surveyed staff report using division‑provided instructional materials at least weekly.
Board members asked for outcome data. Steven Pronto requested comparisons of cumulative GPA before and after the pathway rollout; Stains said she did not have that immediately but would gather the requested data. Other members asked about the use of "focused math facilitators" (some virtual teachers used to cover vacancies) and whether students are being steered into lower courses; Stains said placement emphasizes qualitative conversations with families and teacher input rather than an automatic test cutoff, and the division monitors demographic distributions to identify disparities.
Administrators also discussed recruitment challenges for credentialed math teachers across the Commonwealth and identified career‑switcher pathways and active recruitment events as strategies to increase in‑person hires.
Stains said the district uses statewide summative assessments and NWEA MAP (administered three times a year in grades 6–8) as benchmarks while the division gathers additional data to evaluate whether the new resources prepare students as intended.
