Friday, October 2, 2026
The Franklin Square School District has reached a new milestone, joining other leading school districts nationwide as a member of the League of Innovative Schools, organized and supported by Digital Promise.
The district was selected from a competitive nationwide applicant pool for its educational leadership, commitment to excellence, innovative vision for learning, and collaborative spirit.
The Digital Promise League of Innovative Schools is a national network of forward-thinking school districts launched by Digital Promise in 2011 to drive educational equity, collaboration, and systemic innovation
As a member of the league, the school district said it looks forward to contributing to a national network of innovative educators, learning from peers nationwide, strengthening its practices, challenging assumptions, and advancing teaching and learning for all students.
Jared Bloom, Franklin Square's superintendent, said he learned about the league through a colleague, introduced the opportunity to the district, and closely oversaw the application process.
“Innovation in our district is human-centered,” Bloom said in a release. “Technology, including artificial intelligence, serves as a tool to enhance teaching and learning, not replace the relationships at the core of education.
"Our educators are supported through ongoing professional learning, collaborative structures, and access to real-time data, allowing them to make informed instructional decisions that directly impact student outcomes,” Bloom added.
Through this membership, leaders, teachers and students across the district gain access to a range of learning opportunities and resources, including learning within real systems, engaging in peer-to-peer learning, and co-creating and research-backed approaches.
Celebrating its 15th anniversary, the league said it welcomes its newest 35 cohorts, highlighting stories of impact from districts across the network since its founding. Franklin Square, along with the other new league members, brings the total to 175 districts across 37 states, expanding its reach to more than 4.4 million students.
“The best solutions in education right now aren't coming from any one district working alone,” Jillian Doggett, Digital Promise's director of network support, said in a release. “For 15 years, the League has proven that when leaders see innovative practices firsthand, learn alongside peers facing the same challenges, and co-design research-backed solutions with our team, everyone moves faster.
"A practice piloted in one classroom becomes a resource for teachers in dozens of districts," Doggett added, "and a question one leader raises becomes an answer thousands of students benefit from. That's what membership means for Franklin Square UFSD: its educators and students don't just contribute to that progress; they get to draw on it.”
Casey Hauptman, Franklin Square's director of technology, emphasized that league membership connects the district to a national network of forward-thinking school systems. She noted that the district has implemented a daily living skills space for students of all abilities at the John Street School on Nassau Boulevard.
Hauptman explained that the space is designed like a studio apartment to simulate real-life environments and support functional independence, receiving state and national recognition as an innovative model for helping young students build practical life skills and social-emotional competencies.
“We're very honored to have received both of these awards and designations, and we're just very thankful for our teachers, our administrators, our students, our families, and the Board of Education for helping us build this culture of innovation and academic excellence and connectedness,” Hauptman said. “And, you know, sharing in this belief that we can do anything, and our slogan here is, 'We can, we will, we do.’ And, you know, that's the spirit behind the work, and that's what these recognitions are a celebration of.”
Hauptman said the membership is expected to strengthen continuous improvement for students and staff by helping the district share what it learns, refine promising ideas, and bring back new approaches from districts nationwide.
