LINDEN PUBLIC SCHOOLS, NJ — From elementary classrooms to high school learning labs, students across Linden Public Schools spent the 2025-26 school year building skills, mastering standards, and embracing academic growth through the district’s first-ever District-Wide Edmentum Challenge.
Students had already been utilizing the Edmentum platform throughout the school year as part of the district’s ongoing commitment to personalized learning and academic achievement. Building on that foundation, the district’s Mathematics and Language Arts Departments officially launched the districtwide challenge in December 2025, transforming daily learning into a friendly academic competition designed to boost engagement, strengthen achievement in Math and English Language Arts, and encourage students to master skills through individualized Learning Paths.
According to district organizers, students competed for recognition in categories including the “Highest Number of Skills Mastered” and “Most Improved Diagnostic Score.”
Personalized Learning Meets Friendly Competition
Built around the challenge theme, “Do Your Best — Nothing Less,” the initiative encouraged students to remain focused on continuous academic growth while progressing through personalized lessons and targeted skill-building activities on the Edmentum platform.
The challenge officially concluded on April 1, with schools across the district hosting individual recognition ceremonies throughout the latter part of May to celebrate student achievement and academic growth. The final districtwide celebration was held May 28 at Linden High School, where Superintendent Dr. Atiya Y. Perkins joined Principal Charles Koonce, Director of Mathematics Richard Molinaro, and Laura Venezio, Supervisor of ELA K-12, in congratulating students and encouraging them to continue striving for excellence beyond the competition.
Using the Edmentum platform — a nationally recognized digital learning system centered on personalized instruction and skill mastery — students worked throughout the challenge on individualized Learning Paths tailored to their academic needs and progress. Linden Public Schools has utilized the platform for approximately five years as part of its broader commitment to innovative instruction, student growth, and future-ready learning opportunities.
Building Skills, One Lesson at a Time
For district leaders, the challenge represented far more than an academic competition. It became a districtwide effort to foster a culture where students were encouraged to persevere through challenges, celebrate progress, and take ownership of their learning journey.
“This initiative was about creating opportunities for students to grow while helping them recognize that consistent effort leads to achievement,” Molinaro said. “We wanted students engaged, motivated, and excited about learning.”
Across the district, principals promoted the challenge through schoolwide announcements and building-level encouragement campaigns, while teachers provided students with daily opportunities to strengthen skills, progress through their Learning Paths, and earn recognition through the platform’s achievement system.
A Challenge Rooted in ROAR
The initiative closely aligned with Linden Public Schools’ mission to empower all learners through collaboration, growth, and meaningful engagement while reinforcing the district’s ROAR pillars of Resilience, Opportunities, Achievement, and Relationships.
Students demonstrated resilience by remaining committed to long-term academic goals throughout the challenge. The initiative created opportunities for personalized instruction and healthy competition, while achievement was celebrated through skill mastery and measurable growth. Relationships were strengthened as educators, administrators, and students worked together to encourage success across classrooms and schools districtwide.
District leaders said the challenge also reflected the district’s ongoing strategic focus on impactful teaching and learning, student-centered instruction, and leveraging technology to support academic success for every learner.
Recognizing Persistence and Progress
As applause filled Linden High School during the final celebration ceremony, the atmosphere reflected more than the conclusion of a challenge. It became a celebration of persistence, progress, and the collective belief that every student can grow when given the tools, support, and opportunity to succeed.