HINGHAM — Executive Director Michael Losche is pleased to announce that the South Shore Educational Collaborative has received a $146,000 state grant to strengthen literacy instruction for students in kindergarten through Grade 3.
SSEC is the only educational collaborative among 72 recipients awarded funding through the Healey-Driscoll Administration’s Partnership for Reading Success-Massachusetts grant programs.
The funding was awarded through the second cohort of the PRISM II grant program. It will support SSEC as it evaluates, selects, purchases and implements high-quality literacy instructional materials at the SSEC Mini School and SSEC Quest Elementary School.
SSEC will work to identify one cohesive literacy curriculum that can be adapted to meet the needs of students receiving specialized educational services. The Collaborative will also develop a curriculum map and sequence to provide educators with a consistent approach across classrooms, grade levels and specialized services.
“This grant gives us an important opportunity to build a more consistent literacy program around the individual needs of our students,” Executive Director Losche said. “Our educators understand that students may need different supports to become successful readers. This funding will help give our staff the curriculum, training and coaching needed to provide those supports effectively.”
The curriculum selection process will include SSEC program directors, lead teachers, English language arts teachers, reading specialists, assessment staff, English learner staff and other educators. Staff will review possible curricula, attend demonstrations and help determine which materials best fit SSEC’s specialized learning environments.
The grant will also support professional development and coaching as educators prepare to launch and implement the selected curriculum. SSEC’s Early Literacy Team will help guide the work and assist staff throughout the implementation process.
“Our goal is to give students a clear and comprehensive approach to literacy across every classroom and service they receive,” said Director of Student Services Erin Holder, who will lead SSEC’s PRISM II initiative. “This process will allow the people who work with our students every day to choose materials thoughtfully and build the knowledge needed to use them well.”
The Early Literacy Team includes Holder, two reading specialists, SSEC’s English learner teacher and family liaison, and its assessment teacher. The team has spent the past year refining SSEC’s early literacy screening process, which includes dyslexia screening, with professional development provided by the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education.
The Healey-Driscoll Administration awarded nearly $24.7 million to 71 school districts and SSEC through four PRISM grant programs. The funding supports evidence-based literacy instruction from prekindergarten through Grade 12.
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