Under the bill, school boards and charter school operators must ensure that all
kindergarten to third grade teachers, principals of schools that offer grades
kindergarten to three, and reading specialists receive professional development
training in science-based early literacy instruction by no later than July 1, 2025.
Under the bill, the mandatory professional development training is the same
professional development for which American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 federal
funding was allocated. Specifically, the professional development training must be
Voyager Sopris Language Essentials for Teachers of Reading and Spelling (LETRS)
or another program endorsed by the Center for Effective Reading Instruction as an
accredited independent teacher training program and must be provided by the
Leadership in Literacy Institute or another provider who meets various
requirements specified in the bill. The bill also requires the same professional
development training for all faculty or academic staff of the University of Wisconsin
System who teach a course that includes curriculum in reading instruction designed
for kindergarten to third grade teachers, elementary school principals, or reading
specialists.
Third grade retention policies
Under the bill, by January 1, 2025, DPI must establish, by rule, a model policy
for promoting third grade pupils to the fourth grade. Under the bill, the model policy
must include various components, including 1) a requirement that a pupil who scores
in the lowest proficiency category on the third grade reading assessment be retained
in the third grade, 2) a good cause exception for certain pupils, 3) a requirement that
the school board provide intensive instructional services, progress monitoring, and
supports to a pupil who is retained under the policy, 4) written notice to the pupil's
parent, and 5) an intensive summer reading program for pupils who scored in the
lowest proficiency category of the third grade reading assessment.

By July 1, 2025, the bill requires school boards, independent charter schools,
and private schools participating in a parental choice program to adopt written
policies for promoting a third grade pupil to the fourth grade that include all of the
components that are required to be in DPI's model policy. Additionally, beginning on
September 1, 2028, school boards, independent charter schools, and private schools
participating in a parental choice program are prohibited from promoting a third
grade pupil unless the pupil complies with their respective promotion policy. Under
current law, school boards, independent charter schools, and private schools
participating in a parental choice program must adopt written policies for promoting
pupils from grade four to grade five and from grade eight to grade nine and are
prohibited from promoting a pupil unless the pupil complies with the applicable
promotion policy.
School district and school report cards
The bill requires DPI to include in the annual school district and school
accountability report, commonly referred to as school and school district report
cards, the number and percentage of pupils who scored in the lowest proficiency
category on the third grade reading assessment. The bill requires this information
for school districts and schools that offer third grade. Under the bill, this information
must first be included in the report cards for the 2023-24 school year that are
published in the fall of the 2024-25 school year.
Reading Readiness Assessments and interventions
Under current law, school boards and independent charter schools must
annually assess pupils enrolled in four-year-old kindergarten to second grade for
reading readiness using an assessment of literacy fundamentals selected by the
school board or independent charter school. The selected reading readiness
assessment must evaluate whether a pupil possesses phonemic awareness and letter
sound knowledge. Current law requires a school board or independent charter school
to provide interventions or remedial reading services to a pupil if the reading
readiness assessment indicates that the pupil is at risk of reading difficulty with
interventions or remedial reading services. Current law does not define “at-risk.”
Beginning in the 2024-25 school year, the bill requires school boards and
independent charter schools to assess the early literacy skills of pupils in
four-year-old kindergarten to third grade using various assessments and to create
a personal reading plan for each pupil in five-year-old kindergarten to third grade
who is identified as at-risk based on a universal screening assessment or diagnostic
assessment. Under the bill, “at-risk” means the pupil scored below the 25th
percentile on an applicable screening assessment, as indicated by the screening
assessment publisher.
Fundamental skills screening assessments; four-year-old kindergarten
Under the bill, beginning in the 2024-25 school year, school boards and
independent charter schools must screen all pupils enrolled in four-year-old
kindergarten at least two times each school year using a fundamental skills
screening selected by DPI. The bill specifies that the first screening assessment must
occur before the 46th day of the school term and that both screenings be completed

by no later than 45 days before the last day of school. The bill defines a “fundamental
skills screening assessment” as an assessment that evaluates a pupil's phonemic
awareness and letter sound knowledge.
Universal screening and diagnostic assessments and interventions
Required universal screening assessments
Under the bill, beginning in the 2024-25 school year, school boards and
independent charter schools must screen all pupils enrolled in five-year-old
kindergarten to third grade at least three times each school year using a universal
screening assessment selected by DPI. The bill specifies that the first universal
screening must occur before the 46th day of the school term, the second universal
screening must occur in the middle of the school term, and the third universal
screening must occur no later than 45 days before the last day of school. The bill
defines a “universal screening assessment” as an assessment that evaluates a pupil's
skill in phonemic awareness, decoding skills, alphabet knowledge, letter sound
knowledge, and oral vocabulary.
Required diagnostic assessments
Under the bill, beginning in the 2024-25 school year, school boards and
independent charter schools must screen a pupil enrolled in five-year-old
kindergarten to third grade using a diagnostic assessment 1) if the pupil is identified
as at-risk based on the first universal screening of the school year, by no later than
the second Friday in November; 2) if the pupil is identified as at-risk based on the
second universal screening of the school year, within 10 days after the universal
screening was administered; and 3) if a teacher or parent suspects the pupil has
characteristics of dyslexia and submits a request for a diagnostic assessment, within
20 days of submitting the request. The bill defines a “diagnostic assessment” as a
tool that includes an assessment that evaluates a pupil's skill in the skills assessed
in a universal screening assessment as well as rapid naming, phonological
awareness, word recognition, spelling, vocabulary, listening comprehension, and
when developmentally appropriate, oral reading fluency and reading
comprehension, and provides the pupil's parent the opportunity to complete a family
history survey about learning difficulties in the pupil's family. If a pupil is identified
as at-risk based on a diagnostic assessment, the bill requires the school board or
independent charter school to provide information to the pupil's parent about how
to make a special education referral.
Personal reading plan; at-risk pupils
If a pupil is identified as at-risk based on a universal screening assessment or
a diagnostic assessment, the bill requires the school board or independent charter
school to create a personal reading plan for the pupil. Under the bill, a personal
reading plan must include various components related to addressing the pupil's
specific early literacy deficiencies, including interventions that will be provided to
the pupil, how the pupil's progress will be monitored, and strategies the pupil's
parent is encouraged to use to help the pupil achieve grade-level literacy skills. The
bill further requires the school board or independent charter school to 1) provide the
interventions included in the personal reading plan to the pupil, as soon as

practicable; 2) monitor the pupil's progress at least weekly; 3) provide a copy of the
personal reading plan to the pupil's parent; 4) obtain a copy of the reading plan
signed by the pupil's parent; and 5) after 10 weeks of providing the interventions
required in the personal reading plan, notify the pupil's parent of the pupil's
progress.
Selected and approved early literacy assessments
Under the bill, by July 15, 2024, DPI must select a fundamental skills screening
assessment, select a universal screening assessment, and establish and maintain a
list of approved diagnostic assessments on its website. DPI must also submit a list
of the selected and approved assessments to the appropriate standing committees of
the legislature. Under the bill, DPI may only approve an early literacy assessment
if the assessment has a sensitivity rate of at least 70 percent, has a specificity rate
of at least 80 percent, and includes a growth measure.
State funding for early literacy assessments
Under the bill, DPI must pay each school board and independent charter school
for the per pupil cost of each early literacy assessment required to be administered
under the bill. However, beginning in the 2025-26 school year, a school board or
independent charter school is eligible for the state funding provided in the bill only
if the school board or independent charter school submits an annual report to DPI
and in that report indicates that the school board or charter school used only selected
or approved early literacy assessments in the previous school year. Under current
law, DPI pays school boards and independent charter schools for the per pupil cost
of the reading readiness assessment selected by the school board or independent
charter school.
Parent notification requirements
Under the bill, a school board or independent charter school must provide a
pupil's results on an early literacy assessment to the pupil's parent by no later than
15 days after the applicable assessment is scored. The results provided to the parent
must be in the parent's native language and must include the pupil's overall score,
the pupil's score on each literacy skill category assessed by the assessment, the
pupil's percentile rank score, if available, the score on the assessment that indicates
a pupil is at-risk, and a plain language explanation of the literacy skills that were
evaluated by the assessment. In addition, if a school board or independent charter
school is required to screen a pupil using a diagnostic assessment, the school board
or independent charter school must provide the pupil's parent with information
related to characteristics of dyslexia, including information about the common
indicators of characteristics of dyslexia and appropriate interventions and
accommodations for pupils with characteristics of dyslexia.
The bill also requires each school board and independent charter school to have
an early literacy remediation plan. An early literacy remediation plan must include
information about assessments used to identify at-risk pupils, the interventions
used to address characteristics of dyslexia, and monitoring pupil progress related to
early literacy skills. Under the bill, each school district and independent charter
school must post its early literacy remediation plan on its website.

Under current law, a school board or independent charter school must report
the results of a reading readiness assessment to a pupil's parent. Current law does
not provide a deadline by which the reading readiness results must be provided to
parents.
Reporting requirements
Under the bill, school boards and independent charter schools must annually,
by July 15, report to DPI 1) the number of pupils who were identified as at-risk based
on early literacy assessments administered in the previous school year; 2) the
number of five-year-old kindergarten to third grade pupils who began receiving
literacy interventions or remedial reading services in the previous school year, by
grade; 3) the total number of five-year-old kindergarten to third grade pupils who
received literacy interventions or remedial reading services in the previous school
year; 4) the number of five-year-old kindergarten to third grade pupils who exited
literacy interventions in the previous school year; and 5) the number of pupils for
whom a special education referral was made based on the results of a diagnostic
assessment. The school board or independent charter school must also report the
names of the diagnostic assessments the school board or independent charter school
used to assess pupils in the previous school year. Annually, by November 30, DPI
must compile the information it receives from school boards and independent charter
schools and submit a report to the legislature.
Enforcement
The bill allows the parent or guardian of a pupil enrolled in four-year-old
kindergarten to third grade in a school district or independent charter school to file
a complaint with DPI if the parent or guardian believes that the school board or
independent charter school operator is not in compliance with requirements in the
bill. Under the bill, DPI must issue a determination on whether the school board or
independent charter school is in compliance and, if the school board or independent
charter school is not in compliance, describe the actions that must be taken for the
school board or independent charter school to be in compliance with the applicable
requirements. If a school board or independent charter school continues to fail to
comply with the requirements in the bill, the bill allows an individual who filed a
complaint with DPI to bring an action in circuit court to compel the school board or
independent charter school to comply with the requirements created in the bill.
For further information see the state and local fiscal estimate, which will be
printed as an appendix to this bill.
The people of the state of Wisconsin, represented in senate and assembly, do
enact as follows:
AB321,1 1Section 1. 15.01 (6) of the statutes is amended to read:
AB321,9,12
115.01 (6) “Division," “bureau," “section," and “unit" means the subunits of a
2department or an independent agency, whether specifically created by law or created
3by the head of the department or the independent agency for the more economic and
4efficient administration and operation of the programs assigned to the department
5or independent agency. The office of credit unions in the department of financial
6institutions, the office of the inspector general in the department of children and
7families, the office of the inspector general in the department of health services, and
8the office of children's mental health in the department of health services have the
9meaning of “division" under this subsection. The office of the long-term care
10ombudsman under the board on aging and long-term care and the office of
11educational accountability and the office of literacy in the department of public
12instruction have the meaning of “bureau" under this subsection.
AB321,2 13Section 2 . 15.374 (2) of the statutes is created to read:
AB321,9,1914 15.374 (2) Office of literacy. There is created an office of literacy, to be known
15as the Wisconsin Reading Center, in the department of public instruction. The
16director of the office shall be nominated by the state superintendent of public
17instruction after consultation with the council on early literacy curricula, and with
18the advice and consent of the senate appointed, to serve at the pleasure of the state
19superintendent of public instruction.
AB321,3 20Section 3. 15.374 (2) of the statutes, as created by 2023 Wisconsin Act .... (this
21act), is repealed.
AB321,4 22Section 4 . 15.377 (9) of the statutes is created to read:
AB321,9,2523 15.377 (9) Council on early literacy curricula. (a) There is created in the
24department of public instruction a council on early literacy curricula composed of 9
25members who have knowledge of or experience with science-based early literacy

1instruction, as defined in s. 118.015 (1c) (b), and literacy curricula for pupils in grades
2kindergarten to 3. The members of the council shall be appointed for staggered
33-year terms, as follows:.
AB321,10,44 1. Three members appointed by the speaker of the assembly.
AB321,10,55 2. Three members appointed by the senate majority leader.
AB321,10,66 3. Three members appointed by the state superintendent of public instruction.
AB321,10,87 (b) An individual may not serve as a member of the council under this
8subsection if any of the following applies:
AB321,10,109 1. The individual has a financial interest in an entity that develops, sells, or
10markets a product to assess reading ability.
AB321,10,1211 2. The individual has a financial interest in an entity that develops, sells, or
12markets a product specifically intended to be used to teach reading.
AB321,10,1413 3. The individual has a financial interest in an entity that develops, sells, or
14markets a product to treat reading difficulties.
AB321,10,1615 (c) For purposes of par. (b), “financial interest in an entity” includes all of the
16following:
AB321,10,1717 1. A direct or indirect ownership interest in the entity.
AB321,10,1918 2. Receiving income from the entity during the 12 months preceding the
19consideration for appointment under par. (a).
AB321,5 20Section 5. 115.28 (7) (a) of the statutes is amended to read:
AB321,11,1321 115.28 (7) (a) License all teachers for the public schools of the state; make rules
22establishing standards of attainment and procedures for the examination and
23licensing of teachers within the limits prescribed in ss. 118.19 (2) and (3), 118.191,
24118.1915, 118.192, 118.193, 118.194, 118.195, and 118.197; prescribe by rule
25standards, requirements, and procedures for the approval of teacher preparatory

1programs leading to licensure, including a requirement that, to be approved by the
2state superintendent, a teacher preparatory program shall demonstrate that it
3provides instruction that prepares teachers to teach reading and language arts using
4science-based early reading instruction, as defined in s. 118.015 (1c) (b), and does not
5provide instruction on teaching reading and language arts that incorporates
63-cueing, as defined in s. 118.015 (1c) (c), and
a requirement that, beginning on July
71, 2012, and annually thereafter, each teacher preparatory program located in this
8state shall submit to the department a list of individuals who have completed the
9program and who have been recommended by the program for licensure under this
10subsection, together with each individual's date of program completion, from each
11term or semester of the program's most recently completed academic year; file in the
12state superintendent's office all papers relating to state teachers' licenses; and
13register each such license.
AB321,6 14Section 6 . 115.38 (1) (a) of the statutes is amended to read:
AB321,11,1915 115.38 (1) (a) Indicators of academic achievement, including the performance
16of pupils on the tests administered under s. 121.02 (1) (r), the performance of pupils
17on assessments required under s. 118.016 (3),
and the performance of pupils, by
18subject area, on the statewide assessment examinations administered under s.
19118.30.
AB321,7 20Section 7. 115.385 (1) (e) of the statutes is created to read:
AB321,11,2421 115.385 (1) (e) For a school district other than a union high school district and
22for each school that offers grade 3 in that school district, the number and percentage
23of pupils who scored in the lowest proficiency category on the standardized reading
24test administered under s. 121.02 (1) (r).
AB321,8 25Section 8. 115.39 of the statutes is created to read:
AB321,12,1
1115.39 Literacy coaching program. (1) Definitions. In this section:
AB321,12,32 (a) “CESA region” means the geographic territory within the boundaries of a
3cooperative educational service agency.
AB321,12,64 (b) “Eligible school” means any of the following that does not provide
5instruction that incorporates 3-cueing, as defined in s. 118.015 (1c) (c), in the core
6reading curriculum for grades kindergarten to 3:
AB321,12,87 1. A public school, including a charter school established under s. 118.40 (2r)
8or (2x).
AB321,12,99 2. A private school participating in a program under s. 118.60 or 119.23.
AB321,12,1010 (c) “Office” means the office of literacy in the department.
AB321,12,15 11(2) Literacy coaching program. The office shall establish and supervise an
12early literacy coaching program to improve literacy outcomes in this state. As part
13of the early literacy coaching program established under this subsection, the office
14shall, in consultation with cooperative educational service agencies, do all of the
15following:
AB321,12,2016 (a) Contract with individuals who demonstrate knowledge and expertise in
17science-based early literacy instruction and instructional practices, and have
18instructional experience in grades kindergarten to 12 to serve as literacy coaches.
19The office may not contract for more than 64 full-time equivalent positions under
20this paragraph.
AB321,12,2321 (b) Provide ongoing training on science-based early literacy instruction and
22instructional practices and supervision to individuals with whom the office contracts
23under par. (a).
AB321,12,2524 (c) Prohibit literacy coaches from using or promoting instruction that includes
253-cueing, as defined in s. 118.015 (1c) (c).
AB321,13,2
1(3) Participation; schools and school districts. (a) The office shall assign
2one-half of the number of literacy coaches under sub. (2) (a) as follows:
AB321,13,73 1. Based on scores of the standardized reading test administered to pupils
4during the prior school year under s. 121.02 (1) (r), the office shall identify the 50
5eligible schools that had the lowest percentage of pupils score as proficient in reading
6at grade level and the 50 eligible schools that had the largest gap in pupils who scored
7as proficient in reading at grade level.
AB321,13,128 2. a. Subject to par. (c) and subd. 2. b., from the eligible schools identified under
9subd. 1., the office shall select the eligible schools that the office determines have the
10greatest need for early literacy instructional coaching and shall assign at least one
11but no more than 3 eligible schools selected under this subdivision to each full-time
12equivalent literacy coach.
AB321,13,1513 b. From the eligible schools identified under subd. 1., the office shall select at
14least two eligible schools that are private schools participating in a program under
15s. 118.60 or 119.23.
AB321,13,2016 (b) The office shall assign one-half of the number of literacy coaches under sub.
17(2) (a), in consultation with cooperative educational service agencies, to eligible
18schools that request early literacy support. The office shall assign literacy coaches
19under this paragraph in a manner that allocates the literacy coaches evenly across
20CESA regions.
AB321,13,2321 (c) 1. The total number of full-time equivalent literacy coaches assigned under
22pars. (a) and (b) to eligible schools located within the geographical boundaries of a
23school district may not exceed the following:
AB321,13,2424 a. For a first class city school district, 10.
AB321,13,2525 b. For a school district other than a first class city school district, 4.
AB321,14,3
12. The total number of full-time equivalent literacy coaches assigned under
2pars. (a) and (b) to eligible schools located within a CESA region may not be fewer
3than 3.
AB321,14,114 (d) The office shall ensure that a school assigned a literacy coach under par. (a)
5or (b) does not request or require that the literacy coach perform duties outside the
6individual's role as a literacy coach. For purposes of this paragraph, the role of a
7literacy coach is to provide support to administrators, school-based literacy coaches,
8principals, and teachers to build teacher and school capacity to teach reading and
9language arts using science-based early reading instruction, as defined in s. 118.015
10(1c) (b), in order to increase the percentage of pupils who are reading at grade level
11by the end of grade 3.
AB321,14,14 12(4) Report. By October 15, 2024, and by each October 15 thereafter, the office
13shall submit a report to the joint committee on finance that includes at least all of
14the following for the previous school year:
AB321,14,1615 (a) The number of literacy coaches assigned to schools under sub. (3) (a) and
16(b).
AB321,14,1817 (b) The number of schools that were assigned a literacy coach under sub. (3) (a)
18and the number of schools that were assigned a literacy coach under sub. (3) (b).
AB321,14,2019 (c) The number of contracts that the office entered into under sub. (2) (a) and
20the number of contracts under sub. (2) (a) that were terminated.
AB321,14,2121 (d) The number of requests submitted for a literacy coach under sub. (3) (b).
AB321,14,2422 (e) The results of the standardized reading test administered under s. 121.02
23(1) (r) and assessments under s. 118.016 in schools that were assigned a literacy
24coach under sub. (3) (a) or (b).
AB321,14,2525 (f) A description of the training provided under sub. (2) (b).
AB321,15,3
1(g) For the 2023-24 and 2024-25 school years, the number of individuals who
2completed the mandatory professional development training under 2023 Wisconsin
3Act .... (this act), section 27 (2).
AB321,9 4Section 9. 115.39 of the statutes, as created by 2023 Wisconsin Act .... (this
5act), is repealed.
AB321,10 6Section 10 . 118.015 (title) of the statutes is amended to read:
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