Calloway Elementary Schools Receive $120,000 Early Literacy Grant Award

Calloway County Schools have received $120,000 as a part of a grant from the Kentucky Department of Education. All three Calloway elementary schools have received $40,000 for the 24-25 fiscal year from the Reading Diagnostic and Intervention Fund Grant. The purpose of the grant is to encourage schools to use high-quality instructional resources for literacy in grades K-3.

Only 96 elementary schools received funds from this highly competitive grant. Calloway boasts the only three schools west of Kentucky Lake to receive the award.

Each Calloway elementary school has used their grant funds to purchase Lexia Core 5 for all students in grades K-2 for the next five school years. Lexia Core 5 is an online, adaptive, and self-paced program for students to learn, practice, and improve their foundational literacy skills. The program will be used as a supplement to regular in-person teacher-led instruction.

Ryan Marchetti was the grant writer for all three schools and believes the program will boost the district’s reading achievement.

“We really value early literacy in our district, and this program will be a great boost for our students and teachers,” said Marchetti. “It is a real challenge to continually provide students with differentiated instruction, and this program makes that possible. I am truly excited to see how this will boost our early literacy achievement.”

Pictured left to right are Southwest principal Mark Mallory, North principal Melinda Hendley, Director of PD/PR Ryan Marchetti, and East principal Monica Williams.