Resurgence Hall Charter School in College Park has only been open for a few months, but Kindergartners at the charter school are already making noticeable progress in reading. In August, Kindergartners took the Strategic Teaching and Evaluation of Progress (STEP) literacy assessment. In October, Kindergartners were retested. 70 percent the students grew by one reading level and 30 percent grew by two or more levels.
The Strategic Teaching and Evaluation of Progress 
(STEP) follows student progress in literacy in Kindergarten through the third grade by using tools that are closely aligned with scientifically established milestones. At this rate, students are on track to achieve a step six on the assessment by the end of the year, which would mean students would be on grade level for the average student who had just completed first grade.
Literacy is critical to the mission of Resurgence Hall, which focuses on high school, college, and life success for scholars. The school has an intensive literacy approach and has committed to 100 percent of students reading at or above 
grade level by the end of every school year. To achieve that goal, the school currently offers more than 3 hours of reading instruction and practice for students on a daily basis.
Resurgence Hall is deeply committed to answering one central question: “How can the school create a high quality 21st century learning experience for all students?” To accomplish that, the new charter school is rooted in Design Thinking. Design Thinking is the firm belief that each one of us can make a difference – creating relevant, innovative solutions through a process of critical thinking and creative problem solving. The school also uses a blended learning model, which allows students to use adaptive technologies to work on course content at their own pace and skill level.
