SB 22-004

Senate Bill 22-004 requires Colorado schools and school districts to provide evidence-based training in reading science for teachers, principals, and administrators who work with students from kindergarten through grade 12 by the start of the 2024-25 school year. This ensures that educators are equipped with the latest research on how children learn to read effectively. The bill also encourages public libraries to offer similar training to librarians and resources for parents to support literacy at home. It has been signed into law, meaning these requirements will be implemented as planned.

Official Summary

By the beginning of the 2024-25 school year and continuing thereafter, the act requires each school district, board of cooperative services, and charter school (local education provider) to ensure that each reading interventionist employed to teach children in any of grades 4 through 12, the principal in each school that serves kindergarten or any of grades one through 3, and each school district administrator with responsibility for programs in kindergarten or any of grades one through 3 successfully completes evidence-based training in the science of reading. The local education provider may request a one-year extension from the state board of education to ensure that the teachers, reading interventionists, principals, and administrators whom it employs meet the training requirements. Each local education provider must submit to the department of education (department) evidence that it is in compliance with the reading interventionist, principal, and administrator training requirements to receive per-pupil intervention money in a budget year. The act encourages the director of each public library to work with the department to provide evidence-based training in the science of reading for each librarian and to identify and provide materials and activities for parents and children to improve literacy. Each library director may prepare a plan and submit it to the state librarian describing how the director and librarians will work with children and families to support literacy. At the request of a local education provider or a library director, the department shall provide free training in the science of reading to reading interventionists, principals, and administrators employed by the local education provider and librarians employed at the public library. The act directs the state librarian to work with public libraries throughout the state to facilitate access to evidence-based training in the science of reading for librarians and assist in identifying materials and activities for parents and children to improve literacy. For the 2022-23 budget year, the act appropriates $251,139 from the early literacy fund to the department to implement the act. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

Related Legislation

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