Students at Juneau’s Mendenhall River Community School likely will have more reading support next year, when it’s expected to be designated as a Title I school.
Title I status is based on the percentage of students who receive free or reduced lunch. The district expects 35% of students at Mendenhall River Community School to participate in the meal program next year — up nearly 10% from 2019. The school’s change in status means it would get a share of the federal funding the state allocates to the district for Title I schools.
Ted Wilson, director of teaching and learning support for the district, said all Title I schools in the district get reading interventionists. They meet with small groups of students who need extra help and advise teachers on reading instruction.
The school’s principal and other leaders will consult with staff and parents over the next few months to decide how to spend the rest of the money.
“They will also have some supply and operational money that they can use for additional resources that they might use for interventions for math or reading,” Wilson said at a school board meeting Tuesday night.
The federal government paid for universal free meals regardless of income for two years because of the pandemic. But a lack of awareness about that program’s end left many school districts with fewer applications this school year than they had before the pandemic.
In a report to the board, Wilson said the number of students in Juneau schools receiving free and reduced lunch has been rising back toward 2019 levels. Sitʼ Eeti Shaanáx̱ Glacier Valley and Kax̲dig̲oowu Héen Elementary School still have 10% fewer students getting free and reduced lunch than they did in 2019.
The Juneau School District had three Title I schools a decade ago. The addition of Mendenhall River Community School would bring the total to five.
