Improving Literacy Through Intentionality, Focus, and Hard Work: A Look Back at Niles City Schools' Year of Progress

A little over a year ago, Niles City Schools agreed to serve as the early literacy pilot district in State Support Team (SST) Region 5. One of eight pilots, Niles and other districts across eight of Ohio’s 16 SST regions participated in an extensive professional development experience designed to strengthen evidence-based early literacy (pre-kindergarten through third grade) instruction for all children.

"It's difficult to be a pilot," said Ann Marie Thigpen, Superintendent of Niles City Schools. "You sign up for something and you’re not entirely sure what it entails. But, we've plowed through and have seen positive results. It has taken a whole year to accomplish buy-in. It's good to be where we’re at today as compared to where we were even six months ago," she added.

Participation as an early literacy pilot supported Niles in taking steps to unify curricular and instructional practices, as well as instructional personnel around a common approach to meeting student needs.

Read more about Niles City Schools' progress here.