Title I

The federal Title I program provides funds to public schools with at least a 35 percent enrollment of children from low-income families. The program is intended to help ensure that all children meet challenging state academic content and student academic achievement standards. Staff development and parent involvement are key components of the Title I program. About half of North Carolina’s traditional and charter public schools and all of the state’s 115 school districts receive Title I funding. The program was established by the federal government’s No Child Left Behind (NCLB) act in 2001 and is now regulated by the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA).

For more than a decade, both Park View Elementary School and South Elementary School operated highly successful Title I programs providing targeted assistance to K-3 students, with a focus on early intervention to improve reading skills. In the 2014-2015 school year, Park View and South both transitioned to operating schoolwide Title I programs, which offer greater flexibility in offering services to all enrolled students.  Beginning in 2015-2016, Title I schoolwide services were expanded to both Mooresville Intermediate School (MIS) and East Mooresville Intermediate School (EMIS).

Title I funds enable the schools to provide early intervention, enhanced instruction, and remediation to students at risk of failing to meet North Carolina’s end-of-grade performance standards. The district is extremely proud of the exceptional performance of all of its schools. On September 2, 2026, North Carolina released its state accountability results for the 2025-2026 school year, and MGSD continues to be one of the top-performing school districts in the region and the state.  Notably, MGSD is one of only three school districts in all of North Carolina where every single school met state growth targets and zero schools were identified as low-performing. MGSD achieved remarkable statewide academic milestones:

• MGSD achieved the #1 four-year cohort graduation rate in the state, reinforcing the district’s commitment to ensuring every student graduates prepared for post-secondary education, military service, or careers. 
• MGSD students ranked in the top 5 for achievement in Math 4 and Math 8.
• #7 in Multilingual Learner Progress

When comparing academic growth data from all public and charter schools in Iredell County, MGSD schools swept the top rankings for student growth in mathematics. East Mooresville Intermediate ranks #1 among elementary/intermediate schools for math growth; Mooresville Middle School ranks #1, and Selma Burke Middle School ranks 2^nd among middle schools for math growth.

Although MGSD’s impressive academic results clearly demonstrate the value of the district’s focus on early intervention, a key component of which is the Title I program, MGSD’s success is rooted in more than test scores. Regarding the accountability results, Superintendent Jason Gardner said, "These results reflect the dedication, passion, and hard work of our educators, students, and families.  To have every single one of our schools meet state growth standards, while eliminating any low-performing designations, speaks to the strength of our instructional focus. We are immensely proud of our students’ achievements in mathematics, our multilingual programs, and our status as the top-ranking district in North Carolina for graduation rates.”