Title: G24-Just Read, Florida Intervention Research Grant

Recommendation:

I recommend that the School District approve the Just Read, Florida Intervention Grant award in the amount of $778,862.

Description:

The School District, in partnership with the University of Kansas, Center for Research and Learning (KU-CRL), and the University of Central Florida, developed and submitted a Reading Intervention Research Grant to Just Read, Florida! for middle and high schools.  The grant was one of four selected by the review committee to receive funding.  Since the original proposal was submitted, Just Read, Florida! advised that it was so impressed with the grant proposal, that it increased the award by more than $300,000 to a total of $778,862.  This allowed additional teachers to participate in the intervention.

The specifications for the grant required that the schools selected to participate in the grant be Title I schools.  A minimum of three reading intervention teachers from each school were required to implement the reading intervention selected.  Schools that will participate in the implementation are:  Forest Hill High School, Palm Beach Gardens High School, Lantana Middle School, Lake Worth Middle School, Bear Lakes Middle School and Watkins Middle School.  Approximately 30 teachers will implement the reading intervention.

In accordance with the grant award, each partner will provide the following:  The University of Kansas will provide the Reading Program, to include the staff development, methodology, lesson plans, and oversight.  The University of Central Florida (UCF) will provide the evaluation and purchase all materials necessary to implement the grant.  UCF has also agreed to purchase all instructional materials necessary for teachers to implement the grant, using their own funding sources, as the grant does not permit the purchase of the instructional materials.  The School District will implement the reading program. 

The reading program that will be utilized is Fusion Reading.  This program was developed by KU-CRL and field tested in secondary programs in Kansas City.  Fusion Reading is designed to focus on the integration and application of multiple reading and motivational strategies necessary to improve the reading comprehension of struggling adolescent readers.  The major components of the program are Motivation, Bridging (designed to address the needs of students who struggle with word-level skills), Comprehension (focusing on summarization and prediction), Guided Reading (an instructional practice using authentic reading materials), and Book Study (designed for extension and application of learned strategies). 

The Fusion Reading Program is based upon intervention research conducted by the KU-CRL on struggling adolescent learners since 1978.  Each of the reading strategies and support components has been individually validated as an instructional intervention.

As the School District is the fiscal agent for the grant, it is required to contract with the University of Central Florida to provide the evaluation component.  It is also required to contract with one individual, proficient in KU-CRL research, to serve as a liaison between the School District and KU-CRL and another contract to provide the staff development.  These contracts will be sent to the Board as separate items.

Financial Impact:

There will be an increase to the Exceptional Student Education Department budget in the amount of $778,882.

For Additional Information, contact:

Ann Killets (akillets@palmbeach.k12.fl.us)

Brenda Magee, Ed.D.

Russell Feldman

Attachments (list):
Project Application.pdf
Budget Narrative.pdf
Data Panel.pdf