Valdosta City Schools Press Release:
State School Superintendent Richard Woods announced on May 3, that thirty-eight Georgia school districts were officially approved to be awarded the Literacy for Learning, Living, and Leading in Georgia (L4GA) grants by the Georgia Department of Education. Meghan Frick from the Georgia Department of Education wrote, “The goal of the L4GA initiative is to improve student literacy learning.”
Valdosta City Schools (VCS) was named as one of the awarded districts and will receive additional funds to improve literacy for students, birth through age 5, elementary, middle, and high school, in order to ensure they are reading on grade level and will graduate college and career ready. Mr. Woods will present a banner to Valdosta City Schools in recognition of their receipt of the L4GA grant.
- Provide books and resources to increase literacy in the homes of families and communities,
- Purchase a Data Management System (DMS) to frequently analyze assessments and adjust curriculum and instruction to meet students’ learning needs,
- Purchasing software to create common and benchmark assessments,
- Purchase researched based resources and materials to support systemic targeted interventions for students significantly reading below grade level,
- Provide honorariums for VCS staff leading PSC approved Reading Endorsement cohorts,
- Provide stipends for core content teachers participating in professional learning beyond contract time,
- Purchase DIBELS Next Assessment Kits, PALS, PPVT, Reading Inventory Assessment Kits,
- Provide stipends for contracted services for literacy specialists to address cognitive model of reading, foundational literacy skill development, and best instructional practices to look for within the balanced literacy block,
- Provide funding for substitute costs for extended release time for teacher leaders to participate in vertical team training, literacy planning, and release time to observe literacy instruction in model classrooms,
- Purchase instructional materials to support writing in genres, across content areas, and providing ongoing training and support for the teaching of writing, and
- Update technological devices (i.e. replacement of printers and supplies necessary for data reports and instruction, headphones, etc.).
