Schools contract for literacy professional development
Heather Mullinix, Crossville Chronicle, Tenn.
4 min read
Dec. 30—Cumberland County early education teachers will benefit from ongoing professional development for teaching literacy through the state's High Quality Instructional Materials Literacy Implementation Network grant program.
"In January, when the state legislature met and passed four sweeping pieces of legislation, literacy was one of those pieces," Director of Schools Ina Maxwell told the contract committee during its Nov. 23 meeting. "Reading 360 is the phrase the state has coined for literacy to fall under."
Cumberland County schools signed on to the program in March.
"This training is available to any and all teachers and leaders in any capacity," Maxwell said. "The purpose is to help move the needle in literacy for our students."
The grant provides $83,000 a year for five years to support teachers and administrators in using "high quality instructional materials." The state has confirmed the grant will renew for five years.
As part of the program, the state identified vendors school systems could use for professional development. Cumberland County selected TNTP, a nonprofit organization based in New York that provides targeted training for teachers.
Maxwell explained the organization would provide individual and group training for teachers on planning and implementation of literacy instruction. The school system would determine the specific training needed, and that would be sparked by teacher and administrator requests, Maxwell said. Training could be held in person or virtually.
"It's a great way for us to have additional support without having additional people here in our building," Maxwell told the committee. "It allows us the freedom to ask for the support we need."
Unlike professional development that is "one and done," Maxwell said the contract will allow for ongoing and embedded professional development for teachers, working with the instructional coaches.
The grant and the contract were approved by the full board of education when it met Dec. 2.
The school system is also working with outside providers to enhance its mental health services for students. The board approved contracts with Cumberland Mountain Mental Health and Volunteer Behavioral Health to participate in Project Anchor and a contract with Volunteer Behavioral Health Care System to provide school-based alcohol and drug abuse prevention program in participating elementary schools.
Project Anchor provides school-based mental health therapy and care coordination services for students referred by the school system.
Both contracts are annual contracts.
"Bo Magnuson [director of emergency management and security/attendance supervisor] and Dr. Scott Maddox [Career and Technical Education and 9-12 curriculum and instruction supervisor] have worked with them," explained Maxwell. "This allows them to come into the school and provide services to students. They have worked through the memorandum of understanding so that Cumberland Mountain Mental Health and CC schools are on the same page with the students that they see and the services they provide."
All therapists and care coordinators must meet credentialing requirements, including background checks, drugs screens and other standards required by the school system.
Boston wanted the program to work with the Safe Schools mental health counselors employed directly by the school system.
"We passed another agreement a few months ago for mental health services," she said. "Mental health services is so broad at this point, and it's going to be a more prevalent focus, if we can just get a system going."
Maxwell said Safe Schools counseling supervisor Scott Hull is involved with each of the mental health service providers to coordinate services.
The contracts were approved by the full board when it met Dec. 2.
The school system will also continue its maintenance agreement with Trane for automated HVAC equipment. Boston initially requested to table the agreement pending a review of the school system's HVAC systems. Kacee Harris, chief financial officer, explained this agreement was not for new equipment. Instead, it was to provide preventative maintenance and service of existing HVAC systems.
"We require repair hours and preventative maintenance visits anyway, and the contract just saves us $32 an hour," Harris said.
The contract is for $17,400 a year.
Boston withdrew her motion to table and moved to forward the contract to the full board, which was approved by the committee. The board approved the contract during its Dec. 2 meeting.
The contract committee also approved continuing its contract with the Tennessee School Boards Association for upkeep of the school system's policy manual. The service is in addition to the board's membership in the organization. The three-year contract comes with a cost of $4,250 per year, which is the same as the prior contract.
"It is a service that is very well received and very well used," Boston said.
The full board approved the contract during its Dec. 2 meeting.
The full board also approved the Master Flight Training Agreement with Azure Flight Support LLC to provide flight training services and installation of a flight training simulator at Crossville Memorial Airport in support of the new aviation program at Cumberland County High School and Stone Memorial High School. The program will launch with 15 students from the two schools, with students able to earn a private pilot license at no cost.
Heather Mullinix is editor of the Crossville Chronicle. She covers schools and education in Cumberland County. She may be reached at hmullinix@crossville-chronicle.com.
