PRESS RELEASE - The Chalkboard Project

The nine new districts participating in the CLASS Project are: Salem-Keizer, Bend-LaPine,Redmond, Sisters, Crook County, High Desert ESD, Lebanon, Oregon City and Vernonia.Each district will be awarded a planning grant ranging from $6,000 to $28,500."The CLASS Project will allow our district to take action toward transformational teacher-ledreform and think big about how to support high quality teaching and learning," said VickieFleming, Redmond School District Superintendent. "We are very grateful for the opportunityto participate in this project."Sherwood, Tillamook, and Forest Grove school districts have already begun implementingtheir district-created CLASS Projects. Researchers at PSU are working with the districts todevelop individualized scorecards that will provide extensive data about the projects. Thescorecards will include data on key indicators of success including student achievement,college preparedness, and teacher recruitment and retention rates.With its focus on the support and development of highly effective teachers to increasestudent achievement, the CLASS Project is closely aligned with the federal educationpriorities. This overlap indicates that Oregon could be at the forefront of innovative educationreform nationally.Read a summary of the CLASS Project and key district information on the Chalkboard Website.###