FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Thursday, May 12, 2005
CONTACT: Mary Stadick Smith, Department of Education, (605) 773-7228, mary.stadicksmith@state.sd.us

South Dakota Department of Education awards curriculum mapping grants

PIERRE, S.D. –– Forty-three South Dakota schools and districts recently received curriculum mapping grants from the Department of Education. The grants totaled $666,247. (A list of recipients appears below.)

“Curriculum mapping allows teachers within a school or district to work together to improve student performance,” said Wade Pogany, director of curriculum and instruction for the Department of Education. “By mapping each teacher’s individual curriculum, schools can identify gaps or redundancies in the curriculum and adjust their instruction accordingly.”

The grants allow recipients to create curriculum maps for their entire school or district.

Last year, the Department of Education awarded grants to 53 South Dakota schools and districts for curriculum mapping activities. This year, an additional 43 schools and districts received curriculum mapping grants.

In addition to the grants, the state Department of Education will provide all K-12 public schools with the free use of curriculum mapping software. The software, TechPaths: A Curriculum Mapping System®, is based on the pioneering work of Dr. Heidi Hayes Jacobs. The easy-to-use system aligns curriculum maps with state content standards.

Curriculum mapping training will be provided, throughout the summer, by Education Service Agencies across the state. For more information on training sessions, contact Gay Pickner at the Department of Education, (605) 280-3613. gay.pickner@state.sd.us

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Curriculum mapping grant recipients 2005

Andes Central School District 

Arlington School District 

Bonesteel-Fairfax School District 

Brandon Valley School District 

Brookings Elementary (Central, Medary, Hillcrest) 

Canton School District 

Castlewood School District 

Clark School District 

Colman-Egan School District 

Corsica School District 

Dakota Valley School District 

Deuel School District 

Estelline School District 

Faulkton School District 

Freeman School District 

Hamlin School District 

Hanson School District 

Hot Springs School District 

Hyde School District 

Irene School District 

Jones County School District 

Lake Preston School District 

Langford School District 

McCook School District 

McIntosh School District 

Milbank School District 

Mitchell School District 

Mobridge School District 

New Underwood School District 

Newell School District 

Oldham-Ramona School District 

Parkston School District 

Roslyn School District 

Sioux Falls-Laura Wilder Elementary

Sioux Falls-Middle Schools 

Sioux Falls-Robert Frost 

Sioux Valley School District 

Stanley County School District 

Tea School District 

Todd County School District 

Webster School District 

Wilmot School District 

Woonsocket School District