State officials say Georgia has 'moment of lift' on literacy; coaching, screeners and dyslexia work underway

Officials from the Governor’s Office of Student Achievement (GOSA), the Georgia Department of Education and regional education service agencies told a joint Senate–House Education Committee that Georgia has aligned multiple agency efforts around a state literacy plan and is implementing new screeners, coaching and dyslexia supports.

Sarah Richards, the state literacy coach at GOSA, said the Georgia Council on Literacy is building a state literacy framework per Senate Bill 211 with three goals: "every child a reader, every educator prepared, and every community supported." Richards emphasized cross‑agency participation from the university system, technical college system, DECAL (birth‑to‑5 services) and RESAs.

Amy Dantee, director of literacy at DOE, described implementation of the Georgia Early Literacy Act and related laws such as House Bill 538. She said the department had narrowed approved universal screeners for next year to a list of up to five products that meet statutory requirements and said tiered reading support plans are central to interventions for struggling students.

Why it matters: The committee heard that Georgia is coordinating statutory requirements, professional learning, and school supports so teachers have materials, screening data and coaching to intervene earlier and more consistently.

Coaching and delivery models - The state described a three‑tiered coaching model: 63 RESA‑based Let's Read Georgia coaches; 60 Department of Education coaches assigned to federally identified Comprehensive Support and Improvement (CSI) schools; and 32 Growing Readers coaches in a RESA‑delivered, cadre model. - Officials said the coaching systems share common standards, the new Georgia K–12 ELA standards, and a consistent coaching framework tied to a coaching endorsement from the Georgia Professional Standards Commission.

Dyslexia and screening - The panel noted Senate Bill 48 (the state's dyslexia law) and said this year is the first full implementation year for universal dyslexia screening; DOE staff and university partners are supporting districts on follow‑up assessments and interventions. - Officials said the screening work will be paired with professional learning and tiered interventions so districts can diagnose dyslexia characteristics and place students into appropriate supports.

Questions raised by lawmakers Committee members asked how standards will be preserved while expanding access and supports and how the state would measure progress across subgroups, including special education students. Officials said the new state ELA standards will be implemented next year and that Georgia’s assessment system (Georgia Milestones) remains highly correlated with NAEP; the council will establish additional literacy metrics and public dashboards.

Ending Panelists asked lawmakers to sustain coordinated funding and policy support for coaching, tiered interventions, dyslexia screening, and teacher preparation so schools can translate training into classroom practice.