AB 1017

2023 Wisconsin Act 20

created the Office of Literacy in the Department of

Public Instruction. Act 20 requires the office to establish and supervise an early

literacy coaching program to improve literacy outcomes. As part of that program, the

office must contract for up to 64 full-time literacy coaches to provide support to

administrators, school-based literacy coaches, principals, and teachers to build

teacher and school capacity to teach reading and language arts using science-based

early reading instruction. Act 20 also requires school boards and operators of charter

schools to ensure that kindergarten to third grade teachers, elementary school

principals, and reading specialists receive certain professional development related

to literacy instruction by no later than July 1, 2025. Finally, Act 20 requires DPI to

award grants to school boards, independent charter schools, and private schools

participating in a parental choice program that adopt a recommended literacy

curriculum that contains the components of science-based early reading instruction

and does not include three-cueing.

As part of

2023 Wisconsin Act 19

, the biennial budget act, $50,000,000 was

appropriated for a literacy program administered by DPI. This bill creates a

structure for DPI to expend these funds as they are transferred by the Joint

Committee on Finance.