State outlines plan to update Tier 2 literacy guidance; chair flags governor’s proposed reading funds

State Education Department officials told the subcommittee they are updating the department’s 2008 intervention guidance for literacy and academic interventions and are coordinating that update with SERC and the RESC Alliance.

Bridal Klimkiewicz said the department submitted its current guidance to Hanover Research to perform a national scan and provide suggestions for a revised resource that reflects updated research and best practice. “Our goal is to have a draft updated resource in May, for response and further input,” she said. The update will cover Tier 1, Tier 2 and Tier 3 interventions, including literacy, social-emotional and behavior supports, and the department emphasized that training and technical assistance will be essential for any rollout.

Klimkiewicz said advisory groups composed of district leaders, assistant superintendents, special educators and interventionists will provide feedback. The department also said it will send family-facing announcements in English and Spanish to recruit parents for focus groups and will work with the Connecticut Parent Advocacy Center on outreach.

The subcommittee chair noted the governor’s budget adjustment proposal includes funding cited in the meeting transcript as 4,500,000.0 for targeted reading intervention in a group of districts. The chair said the subcommittee should seek to align its recommendations with any administration plans and possibly invite administration staff to brief future meetings about program design and selection criteria. The department said it will share information about focus groups and training plans and return with updates.

No formal action was taken; the subcommittee requested monthly updates and coordination across related subcommittees.