1. A. Beginning with the 2026-2027 school year, the State Department of Education shall establish and maintain a program to employ literacy coaches to support school districts in implementation of the requirements of Section 1210.508C of this title. The Department shall provide technical assistance for literacy instruction, dyslexia, and related disorders, and serve as a primary source of information and support for schools, administrators, and teachers in addressing the needs of students struggling with literacy, reading deficiencies, or dyslexia or identified with the risk characteristics associated with dyslexia.
2. B. The Department shall employ literacy coaches who are placed in six major geographic regions across the state. The literacy coaches shall assist schools, administrators, educators, and general education and special education teachers in recognizing educational needs to improve literacy outcomes for all students including those with reading deficiencies or dyslexia or identified with the risk characteristics associated with dyslexia. Priority shall be given to the lowest performing schools on the end-of-year English Language Arts assessment or the statewide reading screener as approved by the State Department of Education. The role of the literacy coaches shall also include increasing professional awareness and instructional competencies to meet the educational needs of all students including those with reading deficiencies or dyslexia or identified with risk characteristics associated with dyslexia. The Department shall prioritize supports and interventions including enrollment in reading trainings and professional development for schools which have the highest percentage of students who do not demonstrate sufficient reading skills as established by the State Board of Education.
3. C. Literacy coaches shall provide systems and instructional support to schools to strengthen the implementation of evidence-based literacy instruction and intervention and to build the capacity of educators and school leaders to sustain effective literacy practices. Literacy coaches shall serve in a supportive, nonevaluative capacity and shall not conduct personnel evaluations or impose personnel actions.

4. D. Literacy coaches employed by the Department shall be required to pass Oklahoma's Foundations of Reading test and shall have training in:

   1. 1. The science of how students learn to read including phonological awareness, phonics, fluency, vocabulary, comprehension, writing, and language;
   2. 2. Foundation of multisensory, explicit, systematic, and structured reading instruction;
   3. 3. Identification of and the use of appropriate interventions, accommodations, assistive technology, and teaching techniques for students with dysgraphia, dyslexia, a related reading disorder, or reading deficiency;
   4. 4. The requirements of the Strong Readers Act;
   5. 5. Special education laws and procedures; and
   6. 6. Appropriate interventions, accommodations, and assistive technology supports for students with dyslexia or a related disorder.

5. E. The literacy coaches employed by the Department shall report to the Program Director for Literacy at the Department and

   1. 1.

      1. a. hold a master's degree in education with three (3) years of documented successful experience teaching reading as evidenced by reading assessment scores, or
      2. b. hold a bachelor's degree with five (5) years of documented successful experience teaching reading as evidenced by reading assessment scores with a minimum of three (3) years of literacy experience at the state, district, or school level;
   2. 2. Have a valid certificate to teach issued by the State Board of Education;
   3. 3. Have experience delivering professional development specific to literacy instruction, mentoring and coaching classroom teachers, leading others in a collaborative process, and analyzing and using student performance data for instructional purposes;
   4. 4. Have an endorsement or certification as a certified structured literacy dyslexia specialist or certified academic language therapist;
   5. 5. Are knowledgeable of multitiered systems of support; and
   6. 6. Have been trained in the identification of and the use of appropriate interventions, accommodations, and teaching techniques for students with dysgraphia, dyslexia, a related reading disorder, or reading deficiency.

   shall consist of a minimum of twenty regional literacy coaches, at least one who shall be designated by the Department as a dyslexia specialist to provide school districts with support and resources that are necessary to assist students with dyslexia. The Department shall give preference to educators applying for regional literacy coaches who:

6. F.

   1. 1. The State Department of Education shall assign literacy coaches to school districts that are identified by the Department based on the number and percentage of students scoring in the below basic performance level on the statewide third-grade assessment administered pursuant to Section 1210.508C of this title or the statewide reading screener in kindergarten through second grade.
   2. 2. If a district already employs instructional coaches, that district shall not be required to utilize Department-assigned literacy coaches so long as the local instructional coaches participate in a Department-led coaching improvement community aligned to the science of reading and national coaching best practices.

7. G. Literacy coaches assigned to school districts pursuant to the provisions of this section shall:

   1. 1. Provide technical support to teachers responsible for reading instruction and reading specialists and interventionists;
   2. 2. Assist administrators, educators, and reading specialists and interventionists in implementing evidence-based literacy practices;
   3. 3. Design and conduct professional development to meet the needs of teachers and administrators in the area of literacy;
   4. 4. Provide clear, practical, timely, and candid written and oral feedback to teachers and administrators based on coaching cycles; and
   5. 5. Meet regularly with teachers, reading specialists and interventionists, and administrators to review literacy data and make recommendations for adjustments in instructional practices.

8. H. The Department shall give preference to educators applying to become a literacy coach who:

   1. 1. Have training in the science of reading;
   2. 2. Are knowledgeable of multi-tiered systems of support;
   3. 3. Have been trained in the identification of and the use of appropriate interventions, accommodations, and teaching techniques for students with dysgraphia, dyslexia, a related reading disorder, or reading deficiency; and
   4. 4. Have previously retired and were a highly effective elementary school teacher based on student reading scores on the statewide English Language Arts assessment or teacher evaluations.
9. I. If a school district that is prioritized for supports and interventions pursuant to this section declines to accept assistance from a literacy coach, the district shall not be eligible to receive funds pursuant to Section 1210.508D of this title.

10. J.

    1. 1. School districts shall have a minimum of one reading specialist, interventionist, or teacher with an early literacy micro-credential for each public elementary school.
    2. 2. For school districts that do not currently employ or contract with a reading specialist or interventionist, the Office of Educational Quality and Accountability, in collaboration with the State Department of Education, shall work with public or private institutions of higher education within this state to develop teacher training academies for certified personnel to obtain an early literacy micro-credential. The academies shall provide a competency-based professional learning micro-credential after completing an intensive teacher training academy held at Oklahoma-based institutions of higher education.
    3. 3. The teacher training academies developed pursuant to paragraph 2 of this subsection may include in-person instruction, synchronous online, or hybrid options. The intensive academy shall be focused on MTSS, the science of reading, and standards alignment for early literacy instruction in kindergarten through third grade. Districts shall select at least one member of certified school personnel per school, with priority given to districts without a current full- or part-time reading specialist or interventionist, per year to attend the teacher training academies. Such individuals may be any certified school personnel who will work with students in kindergarten through third grade.
    4. 4. The Office of Educational Quality and Accountability shall set program criteria for the micro-credential course and vet higher education programs seeking to issue the credential to Oklahoma educators. The Commission for Educational Quality and Accountability shall approve higher education institutions allowed to issue an early literacy micro-credential. Both public and private higher education institutions may apply. The first teacher training academy shall be held prior to the 2026-2027 school year.
    5. 5. Instructors for teacher training academies shall possess relevant field experience including demonstrated recent practice in the field.

    6. 6. For each member of certified school personnel who will work with grades kindergarten through three who receives an early literacy micro-credential pursuant to the provisions of this subsection, the State Department of Education shall provide:

       1. a. a stipend of Three Thousand Dollars ($3,000.00) to the certified personnel who receives the early literacy micro-credential, and
       2. b. One Thousand Five Hundred Dollars ($1,500.00) to the public or private higher education institution approved by the Commission for Educational Quality and Accountability to issue the micro-credential.
11. K. The State Department of Education shall electronically submit a report to the Governor, the President Pro Tempore of the Senate, and the Speaker of the House of Representatives by December 31, 2026, that includes an evaluation of the pilot program by school districts, data on whether the program had an impact on increasing the number of students who demonstrate proficiency in reading, and recommendations for changes to the Strong Readers Act.

Laws 2023, SB 1118, c. 288, § 2, emerg. eff. July 1, 2023; Amended by Laws 2024, SB 362, c. 411, § 9, emerg. eff. July 1, 2024 (superseded document available); Amended by Laws 2026, SB 1778, c. 34, § 8, emerg. eff. April 21, 2026 (superseded document available).