1. (a) The department will employ reading specialists and assign them to eligible schools. An individual employed by the department as a reading specialist shall

   1. (1) hold a teacher certificate issued under 4 AAC 12.305 or 4 AAC 12.306;
   2. (2) meet the requirements of AS 14.30.770(d)(2) - (3); and
   3. (3) complete, not later than one year after the person's date of hire, a total of three semester hours of indigenous language learning and culturally responsive education, in any combination.
2. (b) A reading specialist may deliver support in a distance-delivery model, except that a reading specialist shall conduct a minimum of two in-person site visits each year. A reading specialist may provide more than two in-person site visits each year as determined by the reading specialist and the department.

3. (c) In addition to the duties outlined in AS 14.30.770 a reading specialist shall

   1. (1) in partnership with school staff, create specific improvement goals with measures of interim progress for each school;
   2. (2) purchase intervention materials to support the improvement goals;
   3. (3) review staff development plans in reading for effectiveness and provide feedback; and
   4. (4) help design the school's daily schedule for reading, modeled after a response to intervention or multi-tiered system of support.
4. (d) A reading specialist shall provide progress reports to the department on a quarterly basis, including progress on specific improvement goals under (c)(1) of this section.
5. (e) Beginning July 1, 2023 and ending June 30, 2024, a reading specialist shall satisfy the requirements of (a)(3) of this section by completing three semester hours of multicultural education or cross-cultural communications as provided under AS 14.20.020(h).

(Eff. 7/1/2023, Register 247)

Authority: AS 14.07.020, AS 14.07.060, AS 14.30.770