Dalton school board adopts new core curriculum for literacy

May 14—Dalton Public Schools students in elementary and middle schools in the 2024-25 school year will see an increased focus on literacy with the adoption of new core curriculum.

Monday, Dalton Board of Education members unanimously approved a request from Brandi Moore, the system's executive director of teaching and learning, to adopt Savvas' myView Literacy and myPerspectives as the core literacy curriculum for kindergarten through eighth-grade classrooms.

The cost is $1,647,702.23.

"As you know, we utilized our competitive process, we met with various stakeholder groups, and we gave everybody an opportunity to give their voice," Moore told the board members. "We vetted multiple curriculums and we know that Savvas stood out above the rest."

Savvas' myView Literacy curriculum will be used for kindergarten through fifth-grade students and includes "daily explicit foundational skills instruction, evidence-based reading and writing instruction, and engaging literature and storytelling," the curriculum's website states.

Savvas' myPerspectives, a more advanced literacy program, will be used in classrooms for students in the sixth, seventh and eighth grades, and will feature "relevant and diverse texts and media" that will allow students to "see themselves reflected in the stories and develop their own voice as they build knowledge and participate in the broader conversation," the website states.

"This is amazing and thank you for your hard work," board Chair Matt Evans said. "We've been talking about this as part of the Dalton Reads! initiative and how we're seeking to move forward in literacy."

Evans said that included hiring for eight new positions on the literacy team.

"Moving forward... this will help our students progress, grow and achieve in that critical area of literacy," he said.

Savvas was one of eight vendors vetted by the school system's Literacy Task Force. Vendors were considered for their ability to provide instructional materials and professional development for multiple components, including word recognition and language, reading and writing comprehension.

"These components must align with the 2024-25 Georgia Standards of Excellence and the 2025-26 Georgia's K-12 English Language Arts standards," system officials said.

Members of the Literacy Task Force chose Savvas based on a variety of factors, including its high approval rating on Georgia's High-Quality Instructional Materials Advisory list, standards alignment score and parent and community reviews.

Materials are to be acquired before the 2025 fiscal year that begins on July 1.

The system "will pay 60% of the cost in the current year based on the negotiated arrangements with the vendor," officials stated. "The remaining 40% will be due in the next fiscal year."

Dalton Board of Education Vice Chair Sam Sanders said the work Moore and the literacy team members did in selecting the curriculum was "very impressive."

"I'm really excited for this literacy program," Sanders said. "I looked at the materials and it really is exciting. I think it's going to be great."

Evans agrees the literacy team members' work was "incredibly impressive."

"Thank you for getting parents together, teachers together," he said. "Thank you for just the thoroughness of it. We're very optimistic and excited ... I think it's what's right for our kids."

Evans said the adoption of the curriculum is an "amazing part" of Goal 1 of the system's five-year strategic plan, which targets student achievement.

"It's a major investment in our academics," he said.

Steven Craft, the system's next superintendent who starts in the position Thursday, said the curriculum is going to be a vital part in educating students.

"I think everybody's excited to see the Dalton Reads! initiative, what it's going to mean and really how it's going to translate for our kids and help us with student achievement," Craft said. "At the end of the day, we're here to improve student outcomes and we're going to focus on that."