St. James Public Schools in Minnesota has narrowed its search for a new K–12 mathematics curriculum to four finalists and opened a public review period for families and community members, according to a district announcement. The district plans to purchase the chosen programs in spring 2027 and introduce them in classrooms in September 2027. The new materials will replace math curricula adopted about 10 years ago and stay in use for eight school years through June 2035.
What Happened
According to the St. James Public Schools update, the district's Math Steering Committee has met regularly since fall 2025 to evaluate instructional options. Committee members attended vendor presentations hosted by the South Central Service Cooperative in Mankato and reviewed program evaluations using EdReports Gateways. After examining four K–5 programs and three 6–12 programs, the committee selected two finalists for each grade span in May.
For grades K–5 at Northside Elementary, the finalists are Bridges in Mathematics and i-Ready Classroom Mathematics, the district announcement stated. For grades 6–12 at St. James Middle-Senior High School, the finalists are Kendall Hunt's IM360 and CPM Mathematics. Publisher representatives presented the programs to school staff on October 7 and October 21 to gather educator feedback.
The district is now collecting family and community input to guide the steering committee's final recommendation, according to the district update. Elementary families can review materials and ask questions of publisher representatives at Northside Math Night on Tuesday, November 17, from 6:00 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. Parents and community members have until Wednesday, November 23, at 12:00 p.m. to submit online feedback surveys before the Math Steering Committee meets to review the responses.
The Bigger Picture
To screen initial options, the St. James committee relied on reviews from EdReports, according to the district announcement. A comparative study of U.S. instructional material evaluation criteria notes that EdReports.org is an independent nonprofit that publishes the Quality Instructional Materials Tool to evaluate K–12 mathematics programs around equity, excellence, and teacher support.
The programs under consideration in St. James take different instructional approaches. At the elementary level, a 2025 curriculum analysis examining third-grade area and perimeter lessons found that Bridges in Mathematics emphasizes hands-on exploration, pattern recognition, visual supports, and student-led reasoning in real-world contexts. In a separate study of seven fourth-grade students in North Dakota who received Tier 2 support through the Bridges Intervention program and the Seesaw app, all seven students showed measurable growth on at least one of two assessed base-10 math standards.
At the secondary level, both finalists use problem-based instruction but differ in design. According to a curriculum design analysis of the CPM Connections series, CPM sequences lessons around a mathematical story framework intended to build curiosity and engagement for students and teachers. In contrast, a study of 10 Algebra 1 teachers using Illustrative Mathematics, the curriculum framework behind IM360, found that students working below grade level struggled to access and engage with the material. Linguistically and culturally diverse learners also did not achieve academically unless teachers actively modified the lessons.