Can you believe it's nearly June already? It seems like just yesterday it was August, and our students were setting foot in our buildings for a new school year. Now, we are in the thick of prepping to celebrate the seniors who will be moving on to the next chapter of their life.

I want to extend heartfelt congratulations to all of our graduating seniors at Albemarle High School, Western Albemarle High School, Monticello High School, Community Lab School and our Post High program. Whether you started out your educational journey with us in kindergarten or joined us a bit later, we have been overjoyed to have you in our schools.

Additionally, I would like to congratulate all of our seniors in the CATEC program, who held their Completers Ceremony on Wednesday. We can't wait to see what's in store for you next. And on Monday, we recognized our seniors at Center I, who were the first class to complete all three years at Center I. Congratulations!

On the topic of looking toward the future, you may have heard reporting that the Virginia Department of Education will no longer list Being A Reader on its recommended list of core instructional programs for the 2024-25 school year. This change comes as a surprise to us as Being a Reader was upheld by state legislators as an example of the type of programming they had in mind when passing the Virginia Literacy Act. We expect an official announcement from the VDOE regarding the change to come sometime next month.

Given that Being a Reader is is a structured literacy program encompassing phonemic awareness, phonics, fluency, vocabulary and comprehension, we do not anticipate a new instructional approach will be necessary and that the foundation around the science of reading that we put into place around this program will not shift.

However, the division's new Assistant Superintendent for Instruction, who will be beginning work with the division by July 1, will lead the process to select a new program for our students. As is our practice, we will invite the participation of teachers and principals as key contributors to the search, vetting and recommendation of the new program to our School Board for the 2024-25 school year.

As a division, we will use this development as an opportunity to continue strengthening our core reading instructional program to create the conditions necessary for every child to be a successful reader.

Sincerely,

Dr. Matthew S. Haas, Superintendent

P.S. Do you have a senior graduating this year, or know someone who does? Catch the ceremony even if you can't make it in person!