Literacy grant should improve reading and writing in 6 local school districts

Six area school districts will share a $1.2 million grant designed to improve literacy in students.

Shelby, Galion, Bucyrus, Plymouth, Buckeye Central and Highland teamed up to apply for a share of Ohio's Striving Readers Comprehensive Literacy Grant. Ohio received $35 million from the U.S. Department of Education.

"This will impact 5,500 to 6,000 students," said Amanda Mahon, director of education for Mid-Ohio Educational Service Center. MOESC submitted the grant.

Goals include promoting evidence-based language and literacy practices; aligning state, regional and local literacy efforts; and supporting school improvement.

"We're finally putting some weight behind the idea that we believe — if we provide them with a framework of literacy — that all students in our district can reach their potential as readers and writers," said Matt Henderson, director of curriculum, instruction and assessment for Bucyrus City Schools.

The two-year grant will measure the percentage of 4-year-olds who achieve significant gains in oral language skills, as well as the percentage of fifth-, eighth- and high school students who meet or exceed proficient on the state English language arts test.

"This whole grant is a way for these districts to look at our reading instruction," said Paul Walker, curriculum director and assistant superintendent for Shelby City Schools. 

Walker said there were a number of other districts that were interested in the grant but could not participate because of timing, staffing or other issues.

"We span a nice range of the area," he said of the six districts. "It's a collaborative effort rather than an isolated district getting the grant."

To qualify for the grant, districts had to meet criteria in at least one of the following areas: reading scores, free and reduced lunch rates, and students with a disability.

"I think it'll have quite an effect," Walker said of the grant. "It might not always show up in a test score, but there are other ways to monitor results."

Mahon said MOESC met with a number of curriculum directors. She credited literacy consultants Sherri Richter and Carrie Wood with helping write the grant.

At a recent school board meeting, Walker said the grant will allow the districts to receive professional development for teachers, literacy coaching for the next two years, literacy materials for the classroom, tutoring for the middle school grades, family engagement and early childhood intervention.

Walker explained a couple of teachers from each district would receive training and share what they learn with their colleagues.

He and Mahon point to early childhood intervention as a key to the grant.

"It's really stretching the thinking that school starts in kindergarten," Walker said. "The amount that a kid can gain from birth to 5 has been a big push for this grant."

Mahon said the goal is to get books into the hands of kids at an early age. Walker added there would be an emphasis on nonfiction books.

Henderson wants to meet with parents on the role they play before their kids get to preschool.

He said he is looking for reading and writing improvement across the district.

"I'm most excited on what it means to our kids," Henderson said. 

mcaudill@gannett.com

419-521-7219

Twitter: @MNJCaudill