The Georgia Council on Literacy awarded the Sandra Dunagan Deal Center for Early Language and Literacy over $1 million to establish Georgia’s literacy coaching competencies and strengthen the state’s existing coaching systems.
With this investment, the Deal Center, under the purview of the Georgia Council on Literacy, will conduct a statewide analysis of Georgia’s literacy coaching ecosystem, codify a consistent set of literacy coaching competencies, and support evaluation systems to ensure coaches have the greatest possible impact on teacher practice and student learning.
“This is a tremendous opportunity for Georgia,” said Dr. Lindee Morgan, CCC-SLP, executive director of the Deal Center. “We are honored to be entrusted with this responsibility. The General Assembly expressed a clear desire to have a research-based organization guide this work, and we are grateful that the Deal Center is uniquely positioned to fulfill that role.
“With unified standards and a cohesive evaluation system,” she added, “Georgia can maximize the impact of its literacy coaches and ensure every child receives high-quality literacy instruction.”
The Literacy Coaching Project, already underway and expected to conclude in 2026, will advance three primary objectives: Landscape Analysis: Inventory literacy coach roles, credentials, professional development models, and effectiveness measures across Georgia to identify strengths and gaps.
Competency Development: Define and codify knowledge, skills, and abilities for literacy coaches, aligned with the science of reading, and create a framework for a future credentialing system.
Evaluation and Continuous Improvement: Partner with statewide leaders to develop consistent data collection, monitoring tools, and shared goals to strengthen literacy coaching.
By aligning coaching efforts across multiple agencies and establishing consistent standards, this project will strengthen teacher practice and provide every child in Georgia the opportunity to succeed in reading and learning. — Contributed