Woburn Public Schools Awarded $261,000 Grant to Strengthen Middle School Literacy

WOBURN — Superintendent Matthew Crowley is pleased to share that Woburn Public Schools has been awarded a $261,000 Partnership for Reading Success- Massachusetts (PRISM) III grant from the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE).

The district will use the grant to evaluate, select and implement new High-Quality Instructional Materials (HQIM) for English Language Arts (ELA) across Grades 6 through 8, strengthening literacy at Joyce Middle School and Kennedy Middle School.

The implementation of the grant is expected to follow the following timeline: 

• Year 1 (2026-2027): Focus on curriculum-specific professional learning, the review of programs, and the purchasing of Tier 1 materials.
• Year 2 (2027-2028): Implementation of the new curriculum with coaching from PRISM Curriculum & Instruction coaches.
• Years 3-4 (2028-2030): Sustainability of implementation through ongoing coaching and progress monitoring.

The grant will support the years-long process of identifying and implementing a new ELA curriculum that meets the needs of Woburn’s middle school students and provides consistent, high-quality instruction.

Through the PRISM III grant, Woburn Public Schools will establish a dedicated Evaluation and Selection Team consisting of middle school ELA teachers, special education educators, multilingual specialists, building principals and district leaders. The team will collaborate to review state-approved curriculum programs using DESE’s IMplement MA Process before selecting the materials that best align with the district’s goals and the students’ needs.

The adoption of the new ELA curriculum reflects the district’s commitment to addressing student performance trends as well as making lasting improvements to Tier 1 instruction.

The new materials will be designed to provide all middle school students with access to high-quality literacy instruction and support educators in delivering consistent instruction across the district. 

The four-year partnership with DESE will launch in 2026 and conclude in 2030, with a focus on sustained implementation in the years after.

“Selecting a new ELA curriculum is an important decision that requires thoughtful consideration and collaboration from our educators and district leaders,” said Superintendent Crowley. “This grant allows us to invest in high-quality materials, while ensuring that our teachers have the training and support necessary to successfully implement them.”