School Committee Reviews Updates on Universal Preschool and Eighth Grade Algebra

Officials from Cambridge Public Schools updated the School Committee on the status of two decades-long projects — Algebra 1 in eighth grade and universal preschool — in a Tuesday meeting.

The Cambridge Public School district is on track for the 2026 goal to offer Algebra 1 in the eighth grade, according to a presentation from Heather Francis, Executive Director of Academics.

In 2023, the district adopted an accelerated curriculum for upper school math adjusting to prepare for Algebra 1 to be taken in the 8th grade. The change came after three decades of back-and-forth on whether, and how, to implement the curriculum.

During the presentation, Francis told the Committee that Algebra 1 may not be offered to every eighth grader in 2026, depending on their preparation level.

“We have not yet completely ruled out the option that everyone could or may take an advanced math class next year as 8th graders,” Francis said. “But we really want to be sure that the data indicates that all of our students are prepared for Algebra 1 coursework next year.”

Francis added that a final decision on the different Algebra 1 pathways will be made by early March.

CPS currently has a mixed 7th-grade curriculum that incorporates some but not all of the accelerated content. Current 6th graders have a fully accelerated curriculum and are on track to take Algebra 1 in the 8th grade.

Interim Superintendent David G. Murphy and members of the district leadership team provided updates on the school improvement plan, Cambridge Preschool Program, and budget in addition to the update on the accelerated math curriculum.

Karen Feeney, Executive Director of Early Childhood for CPS, said the district plans on bringing multiple preschool programs under the same roof — the recently closed Kennedy-Longfellow school.

“At this point, we will be using that space for some of our preschool programs next year.” she said. She added that the decision was made to allow for teacher collaboration,

Feeney also presented updates on the Cambridge Preschool Program based on last week’s roundtable, clarifying their working definition play-based curriculum as 60 minutes of purposeful play incorporating concepts from their focused learning.

After City Councillors highlighted the lack of extended day preschool options at the roundtable, Feeney said the district is “recognizing that this is an issue that the public schools do have” she said.

“We do want to focus our attention on the students that will be placed through CPS, through their IEPs, and may have limited options for other choices outside of the CPSD community,” Feeney said. “We are working closely and will be providing updates on our extended day programming.”

The School Committee is set to virtually reconvene on Jan. 28 to discuss the ongoing superintendent search.

— Staff writer Ayaan Ahmad can be reached at ayaan.ahmad@thecrimson.com. Follow him on X @ayaanahmad2024.

— Staff writer Claire A. Michal can be reached at claire.michal@thecrimson.com.