Clintondale schools detail new grants and expansion of early childhood and reading interventions

The Clintondale Community Schools board heard a report from Superintendent Ken Janzerick and Chief Academic Officer Heather Halpin on the district’s academic priorities and new grant funding meant to boost early childhood and reading supports.

Halpin told the board the district received a 35j grant for $253,000 that will support the district’s new early childhood center, expand Great Start Readiness Program (GSRP) classrooms from five to seven and allow purchase of the CKLA curriculum for Young Fives and elementary classrooms. “We just received a 35 j grant for $253,000 and that is going to help us really have a great start with our new early childhood center,” Halpin said.

The district plans to use grant funds to fund coaching, professional development and in-classroom coaching from CKLA consultants next year; Halpin said the consultants will “come in and coach our teachers in real time right in their classrooms” and that the district will contract with CKLA consultants to support implementation. She said intervention staffing (reading and math interventionists, behavior coaches and Title I supports) is funded through a mix of ESSER III, Title I and other grant sources and currently supports about 130 students districtwide.

Superintendent Janzerick also announced a separate award — roughly $285,000 for a Michigan “Kids Back on Track” grant — that will underwrite after-school high-dose tutoring in partnership with the MISD and fund two reading interventionists. Janzerick described the approach as layered: “All of our support people are paid from grants with the intention that money is allocated in the grant language for intervention and that’s how we’re using it.”

The board’s discussion focused on sustainability and staffing. A board member asked what happens when one-time ESSER III funds expire; Halpin and Janzerick said some ESSER purchases are one-time (playgrounds, materials) while intervention positions funded by other grants will require reallocations or replacement funding if grant streams end. “Most of what we’re paying for with ESSER, you know, they’re one-time purchases…but we will definitely be able to continue with all of our interventions as long as our grant funding is there,” Halpin said.

Reading interventionists Terry Martin, Genevieve Jones and Lori Kania later described their classroom routines and family engagement work. Martin said intervention sessions include phonemic awareness, tap-chart letter/sound work, decoding practice, whisper and partner reading, and connected writing activities; he said the team supports roughly 130 students and uses Individual Reading Improvement Plans (IRIPs) for students reading a year or more below grade level. “For any student that reads a year or more below a year or more below in their reading, we have the parents have to sign an IRIP,” Martin said, describing outreach events and reading-month activities designed to engage families.

Student representatives also raised concerns about school lunches — portion sizes, occasional cold items and running out of choices — prompting Janzerick to note the district has discussed food service and surveyed families. Janzerick encouraged families to update PowerSchool contact information so notifications and surveys reach households.

Next steps: the board will take these funding and staffing issues into account as it begins budget planning in the coming weeks and as the superintendent and administration decide which positions to continue or reallocate depending on enrollment and grant continuity.