Thursday, October 1, 2026
Students and teachers across Franklin Square School District's three elementary schools are celebrating their latest recognition as an Apple Distinguished School — acknowledged for their innovation, leadership and educational excellence in incorporating technology in the classrooms.
The John Street, Polk Street and Washington Street schools are being recognized with the prestigious distinction for the program term from September 2026–December 2029.
Apple Distinguished Schools represent centers of leadership and educational excellence, with a clear vision for how technology-rich environments support learning goals. Schools are selected for this honor based on their commitment to continuous innovation in education and to using Apple products to inspire, imagine and impact teaching and learning.
The program aims to help leaders and their communities inspire, imagine and impact teaching and learning.
“This incredible achievement highlights the innovative spirit, dedication, and commitment to excellence that define our school district,” Jared Bloom, the school district's superintendent, said in a release.
The district's John Street, Polk Street and Washington Street schools serve prekindergarten through sixth grade students, guided by the motto, “We Can! We Will! We Do!”
Casey Hauptman, the district's director of technology, stated that the recognition reflects the school’s pioneering use of creativity, innovation and intentional technology integration.
Hauptman said the mixed use of iPads and MacBooks in the classroom led Apple to recognize the district's elementary schools as standouts in technology and innovation. She added that teachers use iPads and MacBooks to design lessons, model digital workflows and support multimedia projects aligned with specific learning goals. However, students use a one-to-one iPad model for research tools, creative apps and personalized practice.
As schools worldwide are adopting Apple technology, such as the Mac and iPad, to transform learning, teachers from Franklin Square are integrating technology into their lesson plans to empower students to lead, learn and thrive, officials said.
“… It's very teacher-driven how they choose to embed the technology into their day-to-day," Hauptman said of the teachers from the district's three elementary schools. "Usually, it's for special projects if they have a goal, or if there's a particular curriculum, or, you know, even a holiday that's coming up.
"Some of them may take ideas either from, like, the Apple Teacher website, which is helpful as a jumping-off point, or they'll do their own thing and say, like, 'Hey, listen, there's this really cool event coming up. I want the kids to know more about it. Maybe let's do some virtual reality, or let's make a movie,' or as I said, 'Let's record a podcast,' and that's where the Apple technology comes into play.”
Hauptman further explained that the teachers receive ongoing professional development throughout the year from a dedicated technology integration coach who works with them one-on-one and in groups, offers morning PD, and pushes into classrooms to support real-time lesson implementation.
Hauptman told the Herald that the program uses data from specific learning programs to monitor student progress over time and combines quantitative evidence with qualitative indicators like measurable student growth, engagement, excitement and active participation in technology-rich lessons and projects.
“We're so fortunate, and you know we look forward to being a part of this really great program for the next couple of years,” Hauptman said. “And that we're going to continue on this pathway and trajectory to make sure that we're, you know, embedding our technology in a way that is balanced and safe and appropriate for students, but also lets them, you know, innovate and go beyond what they could do in a traditional classroom with just paper and pencil.”
The district aims to foster curiosity and critical thinking by integrating technology, STEAM, coding and marketplaces, all while delivering high-quality instruction to help each student realize their full potential, officials said.
