Schools across Sussex County awarded state grants for 2019-2020 school year

Schools across Sussex County were awarded special funds for the 2019-2020 school year as part of a series of grants provided by the Delaware Department of Education (DOE) totaling $2.6 million for students in 85 schools statewide.

This is the fourth year the DOE has awarded schools with Reimagining Professional Learning grants to support the work of schools committed to improving the quality and efficacy of professional learning for teachers in Delaware and thus increase learning opportunities and outcomes for students.

The schools represent 16 districts, four charter schools, and two Department of Services for Children, Youth and their Families schools.

“These grants have the potential to enhance learning outcomes for more than 54,000 students,” Delaware Secretary of Education Susan Bunting said.

In the 2018-19 school year, the $541,500 in grants to 32 schools impacted more than 750 teachers and more than 22,000 students. This year, the number of schools receiving grants more than doubled, as did the number of students who will be impacted by that funding.

This year’s grantees plan a variety of programs, many dealing with implementing high quality instructional materials in both mathematics and English language arts, closing achievement gaps among subgroups of students, starting after-school programs, hiring full-time learning coaches, creating multi-tiered systems of support, providing instruction in academic and trauma-informed teaching strategies, and cultivating professional learning communities that use data to inform practice and participate in a continuous cycle of improvement.

To date, the Reimagining Professional Learning Grants have provided more than $1.1 million to fund initiatives in 74 schools.

For more information on the grants — including a full list of awardees, amounts and how the grants will be used locally — please visit the grant webpage here.