Local school district receives literacy grant

WEST BLOOMFIELD — The West Bloomfield School District was among 39 districts to receive a grant aimed at improving literacy rates in reading programs across the state. 

WBSD was awarded $187,000 in September by the Michigan Department of Education. This could be the first of three annual installments totaling $500,000 each. 

The state designated $10 million for the overall grant program that will be dispersed over three years. There were 115 school districts that applied in the first round, which were whittled down to 39 finalists.

The applications were reviewed by Michigan’s Committee for Literacy Achievement, which consisted of educators, administrators, literacy specialists and more. 

“It will take both innovation and research-based literacy instruction to improve our children’s reading and writing achievement,” said Michael Rice, the state superintendent, in a written statement.

WBSD Superintendent Dania Bazzi was pleased with the initiative taken by her district.

“I am proud that our staff are always looking for grant dollars to support our students,” Bazzi said. “Ultimately, this investment helps us move closer to our vision of excellence where every student has the literacy foundation needed to thrive in school and beyond, while also developing the WBSD four C’s of communication, collaboration, creativity and critical thinking.”

The district will embrace the grant. 

“This is a tremendous opportunity for West Bloomfield students,” Bazzi said.  “Although our literacy rates are above the state average, we continually strive for excellence and will not be satisfied until every student is a confident, capable reader.” 

The short-term goal for the elementary schools is to increase the frequency and effectiveness of small group instruction. This will be done by creating new Language Arts teaching assistant positions that will work under the supervision of certified teachers, supporting on-track and advanced students. 

This will allow teachers to spend more time with those who need the additional help and target intervention, according to Bazzi. 

“In the long term, our goal is to strengthen our entire literacy system by leveraging our Multi-Tiered System of Supports, our talented teachers, and our evidence-based instructional practices to ensure all students succeed,” Bazzi said. “We have already seen success with small-group interventions, and this grant allows us to expand that work in a scalable way.” 

According to the Michigan Department of Education’s website, the Multi-Tiered System of Supports is a comprehensive framework that encompasses research-based strategies designed to meet the individual needs and assess the entire child. This strategy intentionally interconnects the education, health, and human service systems in support of successful learners, schools, centers and community outcomes.