Groton ― The Groton public school district has been awarded a $1.25 million Department of Defense Education Activity grant to support and grow its International Baccalaureate program.

Superintendent of Schools Susan Austin said the five-year grant, titled “Lifelong Learners, Global Scholars: Extending the Reach of IB Education for all Groton Students,” will help provide training for teachers so they can improve access to the program for all students.

“I'm really excited, and I’m really so happy about the community support in all of this, and I look forward to working with teachers,” Austin said.

Austin said Robert E. Fitch High School is one of three high schools in the state that has an International Baccalaureate program. She said the International Baccalaureate Organization offers high-quality instructional programming and is noted across the globe as one of the finest programs of its type.

The school district also has an International Baccalaureate Middle Years Programme so all students in middle school through 10th grade have a solid foundation that prepares them to take college or career readiness classes in 11th and 12th grades, including Advanced Placement (AP), IB and UConn Early College Experience, Austin said. The high school also has a careers pathways program in which all students choose a career-related path.

“Any time you lay a foundation, whether it’s in the primary years or the middle years, you’re setting the stage for more success when they get older,” Austin said.

The grant will provide more professional learning for educators so they have the “tools in their toolkit to really reach every kid.”

“We have really, super-talented staff, and this only gives them more professional learning,” Austin said.

She said when teachers receive serious professional education, students perform better in school.

She said improving access to courses in the district where 54% of students qualify for free and reduced lunch is important.

Austin said the grant also will allow school officials to explore the possibility of adding an International Baccalaureate Primary Years Programme for the younger grades, a step that would require approval from the Board of Education and “buy-in” from the community.

Shannon Weigle, the school district’s grants coordinator, told the Town Council, at its Committee of the Whole meeting last week, that the goal is to increase the number of students in the International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme and Career-related Programme classes and also enhance the Middle Years Programme.

The grant is from Department of Defense Education Activity, which has a grant program to help educate military-connected students.

Groton is the largest military-connected school district in the northeast, with more than 1,000 military-connected students, Austin said.

Austin said that in addition to professional development, the grant will fund temporary positions for the five-year grant period: three tutors, the project director and evaluator, and also provide a stipend for IB specialists.

k.drelich@theday.com