Union Elementary staff pose for a photo at Indiana Department of Education’s third annual Indiana Educational Excellence Awards Gala Sept. 6. Union received the Excellence in Literacy Award. Photos provided
Union Elementary was awarded an Excellence in Early Literacy Award at the Indiana Department of Education’s third annual Indiana Educational Excellence Awards Gala last week.
The award recognizes schools that have established strategies and partnerships to support students in foundational reading skills.
To receive the award was an honor, said Katie Smith, Union Elementary principal. She squealed in delight when the news reached her inbox, she said.
“The teachers work so hard every day and the kids work hard every day,” Smith said. “It was just recognizing all the hard work.”
To be considered for the award, Smith had to submit an application where she used data points to show excellence in literacy.
Starting in preschool, Union focuses on a “strong early literacy foundation” by prioritizing reading blocks and interventions as needed for all students.
Over the last four years, Union’s special education IREAD scores have been 100%, according to IDOE data. Union credits their focus on early literacy instruction and intervention for the passing scores.
Like most Franklin Schools, Union implements phonics techniques like Orton Gillingham and Heggerty practices in kindergarten, first grade and second grade. Kindergarten teachers at Union were the first to be trained on the Orton Gillingham technique, Smith said.
In 2020 before the Orton Gillingham implementation, 31% of students were at risk when leaving kindergarten. In the first year of implementation, that number was cut nearly in half with only 16% at risk. In the second year of implementation for Orton Gillingham and the first year of implementation for Heggerty, that number dropped to 6%. In 2023, no kindergarten students were at risk.
This year, Union Elementary had 100% of its students who took the IREAD exam pass.
The school’s focus on professional development and building capacity within the entire community is an important piece to Union’s success, Smith said in the application.
Through a literacy cadre partnership with Marian University, Union has been able to implement brain research, reading frameworks, explicit instruction and decodable texts in the classroom. The literacy coach in the building and the cadre coach have helped impact student’s growth and staff instruction, she said.
Ultimately, Union’s commitment to students is what contributes to the excellence in literacy, Smith said.
“I believe our commitment starts in kindergarten when the kids walk in the door. It’s the journey between kindergarten and second grade, we have outstanding teachers that are very skillful in instructional reading. They’ve done professional development.We support any struggling students with interventions that they might need or differentiated instruction in the classroom,” Smith said. “They’re very good at reading data and responding to it. If a kid is struggling with this specific skill, they’re responding to it. And we’ve just gotten better and better at that over the years with the work we’ve done.”
As part of the award, Union Elementary received $41,804. Union has already allocated the money for professional development, including sending staff members to a conference in Texas and purchasing two new Promethean interactive boards. The funding has “been a gift” this is helping amplify Union’s goals and journey, Smith said.
The award is not just Union’s to celebrate, Smith said. It’s the community’s as well.
“I’m very thankful for our community,” Smith said. “This is not one person winning this award, it’s a community. It’s our parent’s commitment to reading and school. It’s our teachers. It’s all of our support staff. We’re in it to win it and it’s hard. … We’re honored and humbled to receive the award, but it’s been a lot of hard work and it’s a commitment from so many stakeholders.”
