Find a School Using DI
The National Institute for Direct Instruction (NIFDI) receives inquiries from individuals seeking to locate schools and districts that use Direct Instruction. Below is a list of schools that use Direct Instruction (DI) programs for core English Language Arts instruction. Reach out to the contact person if you would like additional information on the school’s use of DI or to schedule a visit.
| School | Location | Contact | |
| Arthur Academy (6 schools) | Portland, OR | Stephani Walker | swalker@arthuracademy.org |
| Core Knowledge Charter School | Verona, WI | Stephanie Krenz | krenzs@verona.k12.wi.us |
| Classical Charter School | Appleton, WI | Nick Winch | WINCHNICHOLAS@aasd.k12.wi.us |
| Dixons Manningham Primary | Bradford, UK | Terri Leighton | info@dixonsmn.com |
| Hampstead Hill Academy | Baltimore, MD | Matt Hornbeck | JMHornbeck@bcps.k12.md.us |
| Mystic Valley Regional Charter School | Malden, MA | Alex Dan | dan@mvrcs.org |
| The Roger Bacon Academy | Leland, NC | Baker Mitchell | bamjr@RogerBacon.net |
| Thales Academy (7 campuses) | VA, TN | Bob Luddy | bob.luddy@thalesacademy.org |
| THRIVE Community School | Santa Fe, NM | Sean Duncan | seanduncan@thriveschoolsf.org |
| Youngsville Academy | Youngsville, NC | Emily Henson | emily.henson@youngsvilleacademy.org |
This is not a comprehensive listing. The use of any given curriculum can shift so quickly, for reasons such as adoption cycles, new administrators, or the implementation of a new initiative. We recommend the following as possible avenues in locating other sites using DI:
Get in Contact with the Publisher’s Sales Representative
Each of the Direct Instruction programs is published by educational publishers such as McGraw-Hill, which utilize local and regional sales representatives. These individuals are knowledgeable about locations that have purchased various programs and may be able to connect you with a site using DI in your area. Don’t know who the representative is? Call the publisher’s customer service number and ask for the representative’s contact information.
If you’re looking for a McGraw-Hill representative, you can also search for your local rep on McGraw-Hill’s site.
Post your Query to the Direct Instruction Discussion List
The DI List is hosted by the University of Oregon and is a discussion list with a few hundred subscribers worldwide. List participants represent a wide variety of positions and expertise and are often informed about implementations occurring in multiple locations. As such, participants are often able to assist others with questions like yours. You must be subscribed to the list to post a message. You can subscribe to the DI list here.
Additional Schools
The Baltimore Curriculum Project (BCP) is a nonprofit organization that partners with Baltimore City Schools to support four schools in East Baltimore. Under the guidance of the National Institute for Direct Instruction, BCP provides training and support in Direct Instruction to the four schools.
Guahan Academy Charter School is the first approved charter school in Guam. The school utilizes Direct Instruction (DI) and serves students in pre-kinder through twelfth grade, along with a literacy institute.
IDEA Public Schools is a growing network of tuition-free K-12 public charter schools serving more than 20,000 students in 36 schools throughout the Rio Grande Valley, Austin, and San Antonio. NIFDI works with IDEA Public Schools to implement the comprehensive DI model in all of its 14 elementary schools.