The Tucson Unified School District is trying a different approach to meet the needs of middle school students who sometimes fall through the cracks.
The intervention effort, called Core Plus and set to begin in November, will serve sixth-graders who are two years below reading level and weak in math but do not meet the criteria for special-education services.
Students in the Core Plus program will be served at one of three sites: Doolen Middle School, 2400 N. Country Club Road, Carson Middle School, 7777 E. Stella Road, or Southwest Alternative Middle School, 6855 S. Mark Road.
Each site will have one highly qualified teacher with endorsements in both reading and math, and an instructional specialist. There will also be a learning support coordinator who will work with the students.
In the Core Plus program, students will work with one teacher in one classroom rather than several instructors as with other middle schoolers.
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The program spans an entire school year, with a strong emphasis on assessments every three weeks. If students are successful, they will return to their home schools for the seventh grade. Those who continue to have deficits will be kept in the Core Plus program for the seventh grade.
"The idea is 'every day, every kid matters,' " said TUSD Assistant Superintendent Jim Fish, who is in charge of middle schools. "We haven't been able to do that in TUSD. We say it, but logistically it simply isn't happening.
"Core Plus gives us the opportunity to work with smaller groups of kids who need that small, contained, one-on-one support."
The program is a twist on the district's alternative school programs - the word "alternative" alone tends to carry a negative connotation associated with behavioral problems.
That's not what Core Plus is about.
"It's not just a referral for a problematic kid - this is for a student who needs strong academic intervention," said Israel Macias-Reyes, program coordinator of TUSD's alternative middle school programs.
The idea for Core Plus stems from a study on students who had been adjudicated in the juvenile court system. When the students were fifth-graders, almost all of them were at least two grade levels below in reading and in math, and had poor attendance.
"We looked at all of this and decided we needed a plan to get at the root of the problem," Macias-Reyes said. "Students who cannot access their core content will not be successful, so it starts with reading."
In addition to improving reading and math skills, Core Plus is about establishing a place where students don't feel ashamed about their weaknesses.
"It's establishing a nurturing environment to say, 'This is what you've been missing, and this is what will help you become successful,' " Macias-Reyes said. "But it's also giving students responsibility for their own learning - that accountability."
Schools will identify and refer students to the program based on a specific set of criteria. Officials will then review data with parents, who can opt in or out of the program.
Fish doesn't think getting parents to sign up will be a problem.
"This is what our children need," Fish said. "We can't cookie-cutter them. There are some who need much more attention, whose skills are at such a deficit that they simply will not make it in these classes as they currently exist in our schools."
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Contact reporter Alexis Huicochea at ahuicochea@azstarnet.com or 573-4175.
