Superintendent Woods: I stand with Speaker Burns on school-level literacy coaches

Op-Ed calling for expansion of coaching model, state Literacy Trust

Today, Speaker of the House Jon Burns elaborated on a policy proposal he recently shared while outlining his legislative priorities for the 2026 session – placing a literacy coach in every elementary school across the state.

I could not agree more with Speaker Burns’ proposal – this is the essential step to build on Georgia’s literacy gains and ensure all students are reading on grade level.

We’ve seen the impact of this model in the highest-need elementary schools where the Georgia Department of Education placed school-level coaches. This is also the strategy that worked in Mississippi and other states that have experienced generational gains in reading proficiency – in 2024, former Mississippi State Superintendent Carey Wright and I co-authored an op-ed calling for the adoption of a statewide coaching model in Georgia.

Calling for Expansion of School-Level Coaching and Establishment of a Literacy Trust

The Georgia Department of Education is in lockstep with Speaker Burns in calling for the placement of literacy coaches in every Georgia elementary school, as outlined in our 2026 legislative priorities. This would build on the work already completed in Georgia’s lowest-performing elementary schools, ensuring all students have access to the direct support of a dedicated literacy coach.

I also propose – as I’ve called for previously – the establishment of a Literacy Trust to support state literacy requirements. This Trust could provide state funding to school districts for universal screeners, high-quality curricula, school-level coaches, training, implementation, and teacher stipends.

Impact of School-Level Literacy Coaches

We’ve already seen how well this model can work in Georgia. Beginning in 2024-2025, GaDOE used federal school improvement funds to place full-time literacy coaches in 60 elementary schools throughout the state, focusing on the lowest-performing 5 percent of schools.

Data from the first year of this initiative showed these school-level structured literacy coaches made a significant impact on reading achievement. In the 60 high-need schools that were part of the coaching initiative, universal screener data showed a 15% improvement in student reading after one year of coaching implementation, with the strongest gains in kindergarten. Schools in the cohort also saw grade-level reading gains on Georgia Milestones as high as 29 percentage points.

In addition to the gains in performance, teachers credited coaching with improving their confidence, instruction, and use of data. Relationships built through coaching were foundational to success, with the largest gains in schools where coaches spent the majority of their time in classrooms.

The Time is Now to Expand Literacy Coaching Model

GaDOE is committed to continuing the literacy coaching initiative in the highest-need schools using federal dollars, as long as they remain available. We are also partnering with Amira Learning (Georgia’s free universal screener provider) and the Georgia Council on Literacy to pair the coaching model with additional student tutoring and professional development for highest-need schools adopting the free screener.

But action is needed to secure these gains for every Georgia student, not just those in the lowest-performing schools. I urge the General Assembly to provide funding to expand Georgia’s literacy coaching model to every elementary school, and am confident this will multiply the gains experienced by last year’s cohort of coaching schools statewide.

We are in complete agreement with Speaker Burns’ proposal for a literacy coach in every elementary school. The time is now.