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State plans to repurpose some professional‑development dollars, selects Istation for Idaho Reading Indicator
Summary
The department and analysts told the committee that some statewide professional‑development dollars would be shifted into discretionary funding for local districts; the department separately awarded an IRI contract to Istation and proposed targeted coaches for K‑3 literacy.
During the public‑schools presentation the department outlined a proposed reconfiguration of professional‑development and literacy funding. The department said part of the existing professional‑development line would be moved into discretionary funding that districts control, while a separate, targeted appropriation would support coaches and statewide literacy initiatives tied to outcomes.
Superintendent Crishfield said the request to move dollars is not a signal to stop local professional development; rather, the department seeks to give districts more local control over how money is used while authorizing targeted state dollars for K‑3 literacy coaches and outcome‑tied funding. Senator Galloway asked for an overview of all pots of money used for professional development; the department said it would provide a breakdown, noting that some federal funds can be used for PD but totals were not immediately available in the hearing.
Idaho Reading Indicator (IRI): Gideon Toleman said the department completed an RFP process and selected Istation as the vendor for the statewide IRI. He said the contract negotiations included Idaho‑specific enhancements and that part of the reason for the additional request was to improve assessment quality and data returned to schools. Toleman noted the department negotiated pilot costs into the contract and that the adjusted request reflects Idaho‑specific enhancements.
Committee members asked what the additional funding would buy. Toleman and the superintendent said the money would support a stronger assessment, better data dashboards and state coaching capacity for literacy (K‑3), with some portion of grants or incentives tied to attainment or growth measures rather than only baseline allocations.
No formal appropriation action was taken; the committee asked the department for a detailed accounting of federal and state PD funds and for more detail on the IRI contract deliverables.
