When you think about it, LDC (Literacy Design Collaborative) and MDC (Mathematics Design Collaborative) are just good instruction, according to Bryant Gillis, principal of Tichenor Middle School (TMS) in Erlanger, Kentucky. To make that good instruction pervasive across content areas and grade levels, TMS partnered with the Southern Regional Education Board and the Kentucky Department of Education to make building literacy-rich instruction an essential part of the school culture. 

Two other Kentucky schools in the Mercer County district did the same: King Middle School and Mercer High School. The results are impressive.

• Tichenor Middle School was named a High Progress School, meaning it is among the top 10 percent of schools in Kentucky showing the most rapid growth.
• King Middle School shifted from Needs Improvement to Progressing, missing Proficient by two points.
• Mercer High School moved from Needs Improvement status to Proficient, going from a 39 percentile ranking to a 77 percentile ranking in just one year.