Literacy Leader Initiative

The mission of Robertson County educators is to enable students to reach and exceed high academic and career standards. The Robertson County School district celebrates steady student growth in reading. However, proficiency rates demand the attention of immediate and future actions for improving student learning in reading. The first goal of the district’s strategic plan states that Robertson County Schools will increase the percentage of students scoring "On-Track" or "Mastered" in ELA for all students and in each of the accountability subgroups. The utilization of literacy leaders will allow the district to target support and resources to teachers, our greatest asset, for increasing the proficiency rate of students in reading.

Competencies & Beliefs

Robertson County teacher leaders believe:

• reading is an attainable skill for all students.
• foundational literacy skills are key to successful reading development.
• literacy is an integral component of all content areas.
• establishing a respectful, engaging learning environment is essential.

Robertson County teacher leaders have the capacity to:

• model effective literacy instruction.
• support colleagues through collaboration.
• employ professional growth opportunities.
• serve as content specialists.
• demonstrate a positive and professional attitude.

Roles and Responsibilities

Literacy Leaders

Promoting Refined Tier I Instruction

• Collaborates with colleagues to ensure instructional practices are aligned with literacy initiatives (reading model, foundational literacy skills, vocabulary, and writing)
• Establishes connections between reading, writing, and comprehension across the content areas
• Develops and delivers training to colleagues at both the school and district levels
• Collaborates with administration and instructional coach(es) in school-level decisions
• Serves on school and district leadership teams
• Assists in developing, promoting, and evaluating district and school professional development plans

Pursuing Professional Growth

• Commits to confidentiality and fidelity in all roles
• Attends required literacy training (reading model, foundational literacy skills, vocabulary, and writing) and training on district initiatives
• Sharpens knowledge of literacy standards and learning targets
• Assists in cross-curricular alignment of standards
• Hones skills in presentation of material to peers
• Seeks to understand the nuances of adult learning

Hosting a Model Classroom

• Demonstrates sound instruction, following the Explicit Direct Instruction well-designed, well-taught lesson
• Models best practices/instructional strategies highlighted in training and/or discussed during collaborative sessions
• Engages colleagues in reflective dialogue based on observation of instruction
• Shares resources aligned to areas of literacy focus

Cost and Sustainability

In Robertson County, the Literacy Leader Initiative will be funded through Title II allocations not to exceed $72,000. A targeted number of 36 literacy leaders will be paid a stipend of $2,000 to fulfill expectations as described in the model.

Sustainability Strategies

• Monitor and evaluate effectiveness of the Literacy Leader Initiative – a positive impact will promote the need for sustained funding.
• Investigate the feasibility of differentiated pay as an alternate funding source.