SB263 Alabama 2019 Session

Summary

Primary Sponsor

Arthur OrrSenator

Republican

Session

Regular Session 2019

Title

Education, K-3 grades, Alabama Literacy Act, established, steps to improve reading proficiency

Summary

The Alabama Literacy Act creates a comprehensive framework to improve reading for K-3 students and ensure third graders read at or above grade level through coordinated instruction, interventions, summer programs, and teacher development.

What This Bill Does

It establishes a state-wide plan to monitor each K-3 student’s reading progress and require core reading instruction plus targeted interventions. It sets up a task force to approve reading assessments and programs, directs funding to reading specialists and summer programs, and requires tracking and reporting of reading growth. It also creates promotion options for third grade (with good-cause exemptions), introduces summer reading camps, and mandates teacher training and a dyslexia therapist endorsement to build capacity in reading instruction.

Who It Affects

• Public school students in kindergarten through third grade, who would be assessed, receive core reading instruction and interventions, participate in summer programs, and face promotion decisions based on reading proficiency.
• Local education agencies and schools, including district and regional reading specialists, teachers, the State Department of Education, and the Office of Success, who implement programs, allocate funds, provide training, monitor progress, and report data.

Key Provisions

• Establishes the Alabama Literacy Act and defines reading terms such as alphabetic principle, decoding, encoding, fluency, phonemic awareness, phonics, and dyslexia.
• Creates a standing task force within three months to recommend core reading programs, reading interventions, a state continuum of teacher development for the science of reading, and a vetted list of valid reading assessments; task force meets at least twice yearly and reflects state diversity.
• Requires every local education agency to offer a comprehensive core reading program and to provide reading interventions for students with deficiencies or dyslexia characteristics; mandates parent notification and an individual reading improvement plan, with promotion decisions for third grade based on multiple options (board-approved reading assessment, alternative assessment, or a reading portfolio).
• Implements summer reading camps (minimum 70 hours) and the Alabama Summer Achievement Program for the lowest-performing five percent of elementary schools, funded through designated portions of the Alabama Reading Initiative budget; camps use highly effective teachers and include pre- and post-assessments.
• Introduces a dyslexia therapist endorsement and expands teacher preparation requirements, including nine credit hours of reading/literacy coursework for initial elementary certification and a state-approved continuum of reading professional development and support for preservice and inservice teachers.
• Establishes monitoring, accountability, and reporting requirements, including annual data submissions on reading deficiencies, dyslexia characteristics, third-grade promotions, and program impacts; creates uniform reporting formats and potential school incentives tied to reading growth.
• Creates the Alabama Committee on Grade Level Reading to oversee literacy plan implementation, revise the 2011 Action Plan, and provide recommendations and ongoing oversight for program quality and teacher development.
• Authorizes the State Department of Education to provide technical assistance and to adopt necessary rules to implement and enforce the act; the act becomes effective after passage and approval.

AI-generated summary using openai/gpt-5-nano on Feb 24, 2026. May contain errors — refer to the official bill text for accuracy.

Subjects

Education