The Office of the State Superintendent of Education (OSSE) has led a $40 million investment over four years to support the expansion of HIT programs across the District, with a focus on students who are furthest from opportunity. OSSE and Mayor Muriel Bowser announced $7 million of this investment to sustain these efforts after a three-year pilot period concluded in September 2024. These funds will support HIT programs for students across 90 DC public and public charter schools this year, prioritizing students who are identified as economically disadvantaged. OSSE prioritizes data to inform strategy and drive better outcomes for students. The HIT initiative is a particularly strong example of OSSE’s commitment to iterative and evidence-based decision-making. Throughout the past three years of program implementation, OSSE has regularly modified the HIT strategy based on learnings from qualitative and quantitative data analysis.

Maximizing HIT Dosage

Analysis of HIT attendance indicated that dosage is a key lever for impact. Students who received 20 or more sessions of HIT closed the achievement gap between themselves and their non-tutored peers by a larger magnitude than those who received fewer than 20 sessions. Tutoring conducted outside of school time, or in community-based sites, had lower average attendance and dosage levels than students who received HIT during the school day. Therefore, to maximize dosage, OSSE’s fiscal year 2025 (FY25) grants and contracts only support programs that occur in schools and prioritize those embedded into the school day and offer more than 16 weeks of programming. OSSE provided more funding and prioritized grant proposals for HIT programs that ran for 20 or more weeks. By encouraging fund recipients to engage in tutoring aligned with existing school schedules, OSSE-funded HIT meets students where they are and reduces barriers to participation. The goal is for this shift is to lead to improved consistency and engagement.

Source: Attendance data.xlsx

Funding Local Education Agencies (LEAs) Directly

Another key improvement to OSSE’s HIT strategy came from a close review of program compliance and implementation data. In the past, OSSE primarily funded community-based tutoring service providers to implement HIT programming. However, LEAs are responsible for student learning, and they play a vital role in building trust with students, teachers, families, and school communities. Recognizing this, OSSE adjusted the HIT funding approach to direct the majority of HIT funds to LEAs. This change was also informed by a cost model analysis, which found that school staff-led programming is more cost-effective than the HIT programs implemented by third-party tutoring providers. By empowering LEAs to take ownership of program implementation, OSSE aims to improve accountability, streamline data reporting, and strengthen buy-in from educators and parents alike. Another benefit is that school staff already know the students, have teaching expertise, and understand the curriculum, allowing them to align tutoring with classroom instruction effectively. This shift ensures HIT programs are not only compliant with reporting requirements and program implementation standards, but also deeply connected to each school’s goals and priorities.

Incorporating Virtual Tutoring into HIT Strategy

Another lesson learned through recent national research is that live online tutoring can positively affect student achievement if it meets evidence-based standards. Historically, most LEAs in the District have not had an appetite for virtual tutoring, and therefore OSSE funded only in-person tutoring in the first three years of the initiative. In FY25, online tutoring is eligible for support through grants and contracts, as long as an in-person tutoring coordinator supports the online, synchronous tutoring sessions, so that schools have access to remote options if they are interested.

The Path Ahead

As OSSE continues to refine the approach to HIT, maximizing student growth remains crucial, with sustainability as a central focus. Lessons learned about effective practices have informed the prioritization of strategies that drive long-term success and continuous improvement. By leveraging data, fostering strong partnerships with LEAs, and aligning resources to maximize impact, the aim is to support models that are both effective and enduring.