On Thursday, August 6, the Healey-Driscoll Administration announced that Chelsea Public Schools was awarded $62,000 as part of the Partnership for Reading Success-Massachusetts (PRISM) II Cohort Grant.
The grant will support the evaluation, selection, purchase, launch, and implementation of high-quality instructional materials (HQIM) for pre-kindergarten through third grade in Chelsea.
This additional funding will strengthen the school district’s prioritization of early literacy and foundational reading. Entering the 2026-27 school year, elementary-aged students have made tremendous progress in reading comprehension, phonics, and foundational early literacy skills. Last school year, nearly 300 students representing the Early Learning Center, Berkowitz, Hooks, Kelly and Sokolowski Schools (primarily first grade students) received 28.2 intensive instructional hours per student, focusing on reading skills. The result of the focused instruction was remarkable growth for these students.
According to data from Ignite Reading, eighty-six percent of students fully mastered foundational phonics skills such as basic alphabet knowledge, letter names and sounds. Over 85 percent of participating students who began the 2025-26 school year developing kindergarten-level foundational skills demonstrated significant growth and reached grade-level benchmarks by the end of the school year. More than half of the participating students who began the year working towards first-grade foundational skills reached and exceeded their first-grade benchmarks, and ended the school year reading sentences and paragraphs at a second grade level.
“We are incredibly proud of the progress our youngest learners are making in literacy,” said Superintendent of Schools Dr. Almi Abeyta. “When we invest in high-quality curriculum, evidence-based instruction, targeted support, and most importantly, our educators, our students thrive. This grant will allow us to build on the tremendous growth we are already seeing and continue strengthening early literacy across Chelsea Public Schools. Our goal is simple but critical: every child should have the foundational skills they need to become a confident reader by third grade.”
The superintendent said she is grateful to the Healey-Driscoll Administration for investing in Chelsea’s children and recognizing the important work happening in the city’s classrooms every day.
“We’re seeing the academic success with our youngest learners that comes when early literacy is a district-wide priority,” said CPS Literacy and Humanities Director (PK-8) Katie Schubmehl. “We’ve invested in strong instructional materials, ongoing professional learning, coaching, and the systems that support teachers every day. Together, those investments have created a strong literacy ecosystem where students are getting the instruction they need to become successful readers.
“We’re proud of the progress we’ve made, but our vision is to continue to strengthen all parts of our literacy system so that every student has the opportunity to become a strong, confident reader and achieve at the highest levels.”
The collective work of Chelsea’s district leadership, school administration and educators has resulted in the prioritization of ensuring that students have foundational literacy skills and the ability to read at grade level by the time they reach third grade. CPS’ investment in HQIM, support of educators to deepen their knowledge of evidence-based reading instruction, and partnerships with organizations such as Ignite Reading to provide high-dosage early literacy tutoring for first graders have all contributed to this effort.
With early literacy recognized as a pillar for long-term academic success, the youngest learners in Chelsea Public Schools are reaching and exceeding grade-level standards. As the start of a new school year approaches, the excitement to return to a learning environment where students succeed is growing more and more.