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District staff recommend HMH for grades 6–8 and i‑Ready for K–5 after pilot results
Summary
District presenters recommended a five‑year purchase of Houghton Mifflin Harcourt for grades 6–8 and i‑Ready for K–5 after pilots; staff said pilots showed teacher support and some student growth but did not present full outcome data at the meeting.
District staff recommended that Perry County School District 32 purchase Houghton Mifflin Harcourt (HMH) for grades 6–8 and adopt i‑Ready for K–5 following pilot programs.
"They felt like it was aligned with the standards," a district presenter said of HMH, noting the company provided professional development and support during the pilot. The presenter recommended HMH for grades 6–8 after teachers rated the program highly.
On i‑Ready, staff said the district began a pilot in January and saw growth among the few teachers who participated. "We saw growth, just with the few teachers who piloted that program," the presenter said, adding that the district did not bring full data to the meeting but that Dr. Dill could speak to the results.
Staff said i‑Ready will also serve as the diagnostic in place of NWEA at the K–5 level and that both HMH and i‑Ready would be five‑year commitments. The presenter said the district will continue to use the instructional philosophies from Greg Tang in classroom methodology even if the formal Tang contract is not continued: "Many of the same strategies are NI ready... we would no longer continue our contract with Greg... which, you know, is sad to see, but we have to be wise with our resources." The presenter also noted the district previously spent roughly $20,000–$30,000 per year on professional development connected with the Tang program.
Board members asked about parent access and instructional formats; staff said elementary materials are primarily paper consumables with some textbook components at older grades and that i‑Ready includes both paper and some device‑based elements. Staff emphasized teacher support through professional learning communities and coaching as part of implementation.
No formal purchase vote appears in the provided transcript; staff presented the recommendation and offered to provide additional data and continue discussion at future meetings.
