For the fall of 2014 initiative Kloiber Foundation has partnered with Russell Cave Elementary School.  Located amid the rolling pastures of the northern Fayette County horse farms, Russell Cave has 306 students who are almost all considered gap students. 65% of the population are  English as a Second Language learners, while 12% identified as students eligible for special education services. Even though the incoming kindergartners score lower on the Brigance evaluation than any other school in the district, RCE’s team of skilled and dedicated educators are able to achieve significant growth with them according to the recent KPREP testing done in 3rd, 4th, and 5th grade.  Even with the students making amazing gains in their years there, they still are classified as a low performing school and in order to further address this, RCE has developed and started to implement a STEAM based structure to their curriculum school wide.

This is where Kloiber Foundation comes in. While their well researched and meticulously planned approach has produced impressive results so far, applying it in a 1:1 student to computer environment should skyrocket results as well as open up a myriad of learning strategies previously unavailable. The school has seen consistent, marked improvement with their scholars through the application of various educational software like Lexia CORE5 and Successmaker, both in specific intervention as well as general school wide education. Unfortunately their Successmaker program was not up to current standards and outside their budget to update, so we are providing them with the newest version for the next three years.

To continue to expand their library’s tablet reader program we have also provided them with a stack of Kindle Paperwhites. Now several classes at a time can go to the library and sit down with a plethora of books at their fingertips. With proven software programs to address reading and math proficiency, a stack of Kindles to expand reading opportunities, and a brand new laptop for every student to use in class, RCE should be well prepared to tackle any future obstacles.