In this week’s Focus on Education, we talk with Sara Geist, the Title I Coordinator for the Crookston Schools. Title I is funded through the state and the federal government with a formula based on the number of students who are on free and released lunch.
Title I funds are used to help students reach proficiency in math and reading. Geist explained how Crookston uses Title I funds. “In Crookston, we use Title I funds in kindergarten through sixth grade to provide students we’ve identified with support in math and reading,” said Geist. “They get that support in a variety of ways, a couple of examples include a push-in service where somebody goes right into the classroom to help students, extra reading time by pulling students out to individual or small group time for extra reading to help them reach proficiency.”
Crookston also uses the funds to help reduce class sizes and engage families in school. “We know that when the family is engaged the student is more successful, we have a couple of engagement nights at Washington and Highland that invite parents to come in and be about of that learning process,” said Geist. “We also provide support for our homeless students, we keep track of which students could use extra support including transportation to events like family night or conferences.” A portion is also used for teacher training for professional learning communities, so teachers can continue to look at best practices for teaching in math and reading.
The benefit of Title I services in the Crookston schools can be seen when examining state test scores, as Crookston elementary students some of the highest rates of proficiency in the region, with 60 percent proficient in math, and 63 percent proficient in reading.
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