TN (Tennessee): Johnson City Schools have partnered with Lindamood-Bell Learning Processes to create a school turn-around initiative that is helping students close the achievement gap. http://www.lindamoodbell.com/tennessee-learns.aspx

1. Tennessee Educators Meet to Highlight Race to the Top Successes
Educators through-out the state of Tennesssee will be attending a special event to learn
more about the school reform/turnaround efforts in Johnson City Schools. The event will
include local school leaders talking about how their efforts have allowed their schools to
close the achievement gap. This 4-year-old multi-school project demonstrates the
efforts that the new Race to the Top initiative from the ARRA funding is attempting to
establish for low-performing schools around the country.
Race to the Top | turnaround initiatives | Lindamood-Bell School Partnerships |
professional learning communities | reading instruction | school reform | literacy initiative
Educators through-out Tennessee are beginning the selection efforts to determine the process
they need to implement under the new Race to the Top iniative. Under the new designation,
specific schools in the state have been selected to receive substantial funds with state and federal
support to implement large-scale change to help improve student performance. These schools
are now tasked with finding solutions that are long-term and proven to help reform their current
educational programs.
As a result, a special event for Tennessee schools and education professionals is being held on
May 6th to report on Johnson City Schools' efforts to improve student performance. Johnson
City Schools has partnered with Lindamood-Bell Learning Processes, an internationally
recognized leader in literacy research and remediation, since 2006 in an effort to transform
struggling schools and to meet the literacy needs of all students. After a luncheon to highlight
the current efforts, attendees will visit a local school where individuals will have the opportunity
to see how Johnson City is already Racing to the Top and observe Lindamood-Bell instruction
being implemented in classrooms and in intervention settings.
Lindamood-Bell® School Partnerships (currently an applicant to be a state approved turnaround
provider) include state-of-the-art professional development that prepares teachers to effectively
implement a high quality and sustainable literacy initiative. Since the partnership began with
Johnson City Schools, more then 200 teachers in the district have received professional
development in the Lindamood-Bell® programs, which address all aspects of reading instruction
and professional development. Teachers are provided with embedded coaching and support
from on-site Lindamood-Bell® staff, establishing effective Professional Learning Communities.
This unique model of school reform is being made possible to more schools in Tennessee
through the state's winning of a federal ARRA funding program called Race to the Top. The
allocated funds came through a submission process by each state applying to federal Department
of Education, with two states (Tennessee and Delaware) becoming the final selections to be able
to receive specific school funding allocations for Tier 1, 2, and 3 services in hopes to combat
literacy deficiencies.
"With a focus on professional development, schools have begun seeing immediate progress,"
says Paul Worthington, Director of Professional Development for Lindamood-Bell. "One
shining example is Mountain View Elementary School. At this site, the leadership embraced the
Lindamood-Bell® model and implemented the programs school-wide as a part of their RtI
framework. Students, including EL and SPED students, are making dramatic and significant
progress in reading and comprehension skills."

2. This year, over 400 students in the district will receive targeted intervention utilizing the
Lindamood-Bell® programs. In addition, classrooms are providing developmental instruction in
all areas mandated by the state of Tennessee with all students being given the resources to read
and comprehend at grade level.
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Johnson City Schools Partnership since 2006:Lindamood-Bell® instruction being
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implemented in 8 elementaryschools, 1 middle school, and 1 high school.More than 200 Johnson
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City Schools teaching staff have attendedLindamood-Bell® Workshops.More than 1100 Johnson
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City Schools students have receivedLindamood-Bell® intensive instruction.Six teachers are
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Lindamood-Bell® Certified Consultants.Comprehensive support for District Leadership
provided.
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2009-2010 School Year Instruction Demographics:Over 450 students receiving Lindamood-
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Bell® intensive intervention.Over 100 intensive groups.Over 60 students exited intensive groups
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mid-year.Over 1250 students receiving Lindamood-Bell® classroom instruction.
The model that Johnson City Schools has implemented with Lindamood-Bell is a replication of a
project that has been ongoing for over 8 years in Pueblo, Colorado. This original project was the
subject of a 2006 AERJ (American Education Research Journal) article that found this was the
only example of a scaled-up research-based program on a district level with sustained results.
Information on these projects can be found online at: www.lindamoodbell.com
Lindamood-Bell is an internationally recognized leader in the research and development of
programs for language and literacy development. Lindamood-Bell has partnered with hundreds
of schools throughout the United States to provide innovative instructional programs,
professional development and consulting. Lindamood-Bell's programs and approach are also the
featured subject matter of a seven-year study on a major school district reform initiative
published in the American Educational Research Journal (AERJ). Lindamood-Bell has received
national recognition from the White House, US Dept of Education, CNN, Newsweek, Time, US
News and World Report and the neuroscience journal Neuron, and has been featured on the PBS
special The Secret Life of the Brain.