myON, a business unit of Capstone and leading provider of personalized literacy solutions in the K-12 marketplace, is proud to announce its partnership with the Detroit Public Schools Community District. The district chose myON for its ability to deliver the 65 schools access to more than 5,300 high-quality, engaging fiction and nonfiction digital books, as well as myON’s literacy tools. The district’s goal for myON is to increase students’ access to books both at home and in school, thereby increasing their love of reading, ultimately leading to increased student achievement. 

The adoption of myON is part of the district’s ambitious academic plan focusing on literacy and innovation. Providing myON for students aligns with the district’s new initiatives to implement competency-based and personalized learning to meet the specific needs of individual students. myON’s digital literacy environment also offers a wide variety of titles in Spanish and other languages to help close the literacy gap for English language learners. The district secured funding to further its literacy initiative through a Michigan Department of Education Additional Instructional Time Grant, which was awarded to help students who have been identified as needing additional supports and interventions in order to read at grade level by the end of 3rd grade.  

“The Detroit Public Schools Community District is very pleased to be able to offer the myON digital library to thousands of our students,” said Dr. Deborah L. Winston, Deputy Executive Director of Literacy. “We are very excited that our students will have unlimited digital access to innumerable books across many genres. We are certain that, with myON, our students’ passion for reading will increase, their curiosities about topics will be answered, and their imaginations will soar!”

Phase one of the implementation began in September 2016, with 41 schools being provided access to myON, and initial orientation for school and district leadership teams. Phase two, expected by March of 2017, will provide an additional 24 schools with access, ensuring all K-8 schools have access to the myON digital reading platform. 

To kick off the implementation and get students excited about reading, myON is offering tablets to the top readers.

“We are honored to collaborate with Detroit Public Schools Community District on its mission to close the literacy gap and the homework gap,” said Todd Brekhus, the president of myON. “Providing students online access both during school hours and after school to thousands of books not only helps them read to the grade level, it inspires them to love reading and learning.”