With support from the Heart of the School Fund, Franklin Square Elementary/Middle School, a July 2024 grant recipient, utilized funding to strengthen school-wide literacy interventions and celebrate student progress.

In the 2024-2025 school year, Franklin Square implemented literacy interventions for students in grades 1-8, focusing on both foundational phonics skills and reading fluency. The initiative provides structured, small-group instruction designed to close reading gaps and build student confidence. Teachers are empowered to test new strategies with their students, measure progress, and then refine practice based on what they learned, all supported by a coach. This project replicates the district’s Continuous Improvement model at a school-wide level, using data-driven cycles to refine and enhance instruction, developed through a grant from the Gates Foundation, raised and managed by the Fund for Educational Excellence.

The initiative is fostering increased teacher investment. With the support of coaching and modeling, educators are embracing the new interventions, and early results are promising. Principal Nick D’Ambrosio notes, “When we see teachers truly engaging with the materials, embracing coaching, and modeling best practices, we see real student success. Their openness to this work is what drives the most meaningful growth in our classrooms.”

The grant not only funded literacy materials but also helped create incentives for students who have shown measurable progress. As Principal D’Ambrosio noted, “Seeing our students’ joy, excitement, and confidence when they see their names on the big posters showing their growth from the beginning of the year to mid-year—that has been incredible.” Franklin Square hosted a mid-year pizza party, funded through this grant, as a way to highlight students’ achievements and motivate them to keep striving.

Project lead Allison Greco emphasized the importance of acknowledging these milestones, stating, “We have to celebrate our wins. Our kids are growing, and they’re growing at really significant rates--many are surpassing stretch growth expectations, more than what’s typically expected of them. That’s worth celebrating.”

Teachers have noted a significant shift in student confidence, particularly among those who were once hesitant to participate. "At the beginning of the year, many students wouldn’t read out loud,” says Allison. “Now, we have first through eighth graders eagerly reading directions, volunteering to read in class, and showing excitement about literacy.”

As Franklin Square continues to refine and expand its literacy efforts, the school remains committed to ensuring every student has the tools and confidence to succeed. We look forward to hearing about their progress!

Six times a year, the Heart of the School Fund provides grants to Baltimore City Public School principals to support projects that enhance their school buildings, their students’ learning, and their staff’s growth. To read about additional Heart of the School Fund grants, click here.