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District reports READ Act training progress; administrators cite early literacy gains
Summary
St. Paul administrators told the board they completed year-1 READ Act training for more than 1,000 educators with high completion rates, allocated $1.16 million in local literacy aid for 2024-25, and will roll out statewide dyslexia screening for grades 4—12 this winter.
Executive Director Craig Anderson and Assistant Director Susan Braithwaite briefed the committee on the districtbs READ Act implementation, reporting high participation and completion in the required foundational reading training for elementary educators and initial positive assessment indicators.
Braithwaite said in phase 1 the district registered 1,128 educators and achieved a 94% completion rate (1,056 completions). For the current yearbphase 2babout 252 teachers are enrolled in cohorts focused on the science of reading. Local literacy aid for fiscal 24-25 was approximately $1,159,148 and is being used to cover training stipends, district fast-screeners and targeted professional learning.
Administrators said preliminary FAST data indicate gains for elementary students where the new instructional models and curriculum have been implemented. They also noted that the state now requires a screener called CaptiREAD Basics for grades 4 through 12 to flag characteristics associated with dyslexia; the district plans to implement that screening in winter.
Board members asked about how the district will onboard new teachers and about supports and curricular choices for multilingual learners and students with disabilities. Presenters said they will continue cohort onboarding, track compliance with the statute, and rely on a suite of curricula and diagnostic tools to tailor instruction to individual IEPs and EL needs.
