Enlarged City School District of Middletown

Creating a two-year kindergarten program: The Enlarged City School District of Middletown has a two-year kindergarten program for students who are not kindergarten-ready; the first year is an introduction to get them to the point where they should be going into kindergarten, and the second year is acclimating and getting them ready for first grade.

Implementing a no-social-promotion policy: The district has instituted a proficiency-only advancement policy, so students don’t simply advance because they are one year older. This gives students the gift of time, so they are ready for later grades.

Providing free college courses for all students: The district offers college-level courses (provided in partnership with Syracuse University) for free to all students, which the district notes drastically increased the number of enrolled low-income students.

Applying a K-5 personalized learning program: To provide learning opportunities not only for students but for the teachers and caregivers that support their learning, the district integrated digital content, targeted instruction, implemented student reflection cycles, made data-driven decisions, and offered instructional coaching to a K12 district-wide model. In addition to students making significant gains in a personalized learning program, teachers credited the blended learning initiative with exceeding their expectations in “student discipline,” “student motivation,” and “monitoring student progress.” These gains resulted in higher engagement in school programming from parents.