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West Linn–Wilsonville board adopts districtwide K–12 science curriculum
Summary
After months of review, the board approved Discovery Education for primary grades, STEMscopes for middle schools and Miller & Levine (biology) plus adopted chemistry/physics texts for high schools; funding will come from the capital bond, not the general fund.
The West Linn–Wilsonville School District board voted unanimously to adopt a new K–12 science curriculum package aimed at expanding hands-on, inquiry-based instruction across all grade bands.
Barb Lisonbee, the district’s curriculum lead, and a cross-level team presented the recommendation after a multi-month review of ODE-approved materials. Lisonbee told the board the district prioritized NGSS-aligned instruction, universal design for learning, strong science-literacy supports and Spanish-language availability for dual-language programs. She said the capital bond will cover equipment and subscription costs, not the general fund.
“I think we can go deeper with students — not just breadth but depth,” a district adoption team member said in presenting why Discovery Education was preferred for primary grades. The panel reported that primary schools evaluated multiple publishers and that Discovery Education’s platform, teacher supports and inclusion of mystery-science videos weighed heavily in the recommendation.
Director Salvaggio praised the committee’s work: “This is a curriculum that I’m very, very proud to be able to vote yes on.” The motion to adopt — moved and seconded by board members during the meeting — carried on an aye vote from the directors present.
Superintendent Ludwig thanked committee members and noted implementation will include co-planning across schools, teacher supports and a multi-year rollout. Board members pressed staff on assessment alignment and the district’s plan to monitor student progress; staff said interim assessments and embedded performance tasks in the adopted curricula will be used to measure growth.
The board’s vote authorizes staff to proceed with purchases and implementation planning consistent with the materials presented and with capital-bond funding as described during the presentation.
