U.S. Dept. of Education
By NANETTE LoBIONDO GALLOWAY
VENTNOR The Ventnor Educational Community Complex learned that the NJ Department of Education has selected the district to receive a High Impact Tutoring Grant.
The DOE announced Nov. 3 that it awarded $41 million in preliminary competitive grant awards to 240 New Jersey school districts to implement highly effective, evidence based strategies that accelerate learning among students disproportionately impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. Ventnor will receive $38,000 to implement the one-year tutoring program.
Other school districts in Atlantic County to receive awards include Egg Harbor Township, Hammonton, Linwood, Northfield, Port Republic and Somers Point. Atlantic Community Charter School also received an award.
Acting Commissioner of Education Angelica Allen-McMillan called the initiative a powerful tool that can help schools empower generations to reach greater heights.
High impact tutoring is designed to enable schools to work with educational service vendors such as Huntington Learning Centers and Mathnasium, nonprofit organizations, and colleges and universities to provide educational assistance to students. The grants focus on research based approaches to learning gains, including frequent, extended periods of tutoring individually and in small group settings, and teaching subject matter aligned to the curriculum and customized to each student's needs.
Ventnor Superintendent Carmela Somershoe said the district analyzed student benchmarks and test scores for students in third and fourth grades to identify students in need of concentrated small group interventions over and above what the district already offers. The program can be expanded to other grade levels, she said.
Several NJ DOE approved vendors were contacted to provide small group tutoring, either during the school day or during academic afterschool time, Somershoe said. The provider that will be in place will provide tutoring in both English language arts and mathematics.
The selected tutoring company will use the district's existing curriculum, benchmarks and teacher lesson plans to ensure their tutoring addresses gaps identified for the students.
The grant will also fund additional academic afterschool classes and supplemental reading for specific students who meet the criteria for participation.
It is the intention of the Ventnor schools to review all student data in order to assist our students, Somershoe said. The district has been fortunate to have been provided with another tool to meet student needs and improve student achievement.
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