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Board approves Read 180 expansion and five principal appointments
Summary
Hillsborough trustees approved expansion of the Read 180 literacy intervention to reach about 2,400 middle-school students and confirmed five principal appointments, while members debated implementation fidelity and per-school costs.
The Hillsborough County School Board approved the district's proposed expansion of Read 180, an evidence-based literacy intervention, to middle schools and confirmed five principal appointments at its July 14 meeting.
Superintendent Van Ayers and staff said the Read 180 implementation will support an estimated 2,400 middle-school students across roughly 10 schools and include teacher training, coaching, implementation support and a designated project manager to maintain fidelity. "We will have boots-on-the-ground support in terms of coaching and a project manager," a district implementation lead told the board.
Several board members pressed for details about classroom-level fidelity and alternatives to the proposed vendor expense. Member Rendon said she wanted verification that pacing guides and classroom implementation would be consistent across schools before approving a program that will cost roughly $50,000 per school as discussed in the meeting. "I'm not going to approve this until I have from our district how are we consistently implementing the materials in each one of our classrooms," Rendon said.
Supporters pointed to the program's research base and outcome-driven contract provisions. One board member called Read 180 "one of the most research-based programs we've had for many, many years" and noted the district had implemented outcome guarantees with payment tied to performance in prior contracts. Staff also described the proposal as a 50% outcome-based contract with training focused first on administrators, then teachers, with weekly Read 180 meetings throughout the year.
The board approved the Read 180 expansion after discussion and recorded a dissent (member Bridal) on the final vote. At the same time, the board recognized five new principals announced earlier on the consent agenda: Christa Washington (La Voix Exceptional Center), Solomon Lowery (Shields Middle School), Lakeisha Woodfork (Edison Elementary), Michelle Alfonso (Tampa Heights Elementary) and Kimberly Lee (Woodbridge Elementary).
Superintendent Van Ayers said the district will monitor implementation and training so leaders can verify fidelity across classrooms. Board members requested follow-up on implementation monitoring, coaching frequency and outcome metrics to ensure the program achieves the intended gains.
