Westwood Schools Launch Side-by-Side Literacy Pilot in 12 Classrooms This Fall

WESTWOOD — May 14, 2026 — Westwood School Committee hears literacy pilot and hate speech coalition updates at May 14 meeting. Assistant Superintendent Caitlin Ahern told the committee that the district's Literacy Review Steering Committee has selected two programs — EL Education's Literacy Program and ARC Core's Literacy Program — to pilot in approximately 12 elementary classrooms during the 2026-2027 school year, with six classrooms assigned to each program; a district-wide curriculum decision is expected in December 2026, with full implementation targeted for 2027-2028. Director of Equity, Integration, and Community Partnerships Latifah Frank updated the board on the newly formed Community Coalition to Combat Hate Speech, whose first meeting focused on balancing incident response with root-cause work and whose next session is scheduled for May 26; the coalition aims to publish a public roadmap in fall 2026. Chair Maia Plotkin also welcomed Sean Corcoran as the new Executive Director of Westwood Media Center, the organization that records and streams the committee's monthly meetings.