In this episode of Literacy Now Together, Brett Tingley of Parents for Reading Justice and Kareem Weaver of FULCRUM sit down with Steve Dackin, Director of the Ohio Department of Education and Workforce, for a wide-ranging conversation about Ohio’s ambitious effort to ensure every child becomes a confident reader. Dackin shares how strong gubernatorial leadership, parent advocacy, evidence-aligned instructional materials, professional learning, literacy coaching, transparency, and accountability are working together to move Ohio from policy to meaningful classroom implementation. He discusses the challenge of changing deeply rooted instructional practices, the critical role of principals as instructional leaders, lessons learned from states such as Mississippi and Louisiana, and Ohio’s efforts to align educator preparation programs with the Science of Reading. The conversation also explores the balance between state expectations and local control, the importance of grade-level content, and why strong policy only matters when it is implemented with fidelity in classrooms. Looking ahead to a change in state leadership, Dackin makes the case for sustained investment, continued accountability, and the critical need for ongoing grassroots advocacy as essential to protecting the progress already underway. Ohio cannot “take its foot off the pedal.” Ensuring every child learns to read is, as Dackin puts it, a “moral imperative”, but it is also a community challenge that policymakers cannot solve alone. Sustaining Ohio’s progress will require parents, educators, advocates, policymakers, and communities to keep literacy at the forefront and recognize that getting this right, in Ohio and across the nation, will take all hands on deck.

Social Media Handles:

Facebook: @OHEducation

X: @OHEducation

Instagram: @OHEducation

LinkedIn: @oheducation

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/OhioEdDept

Resources mentioned:

Ohio Department of Education and Workforce (ODEW)-

https://education.ohio.gov/About/About-The-Director

ODWE High-Quality Instructional Materials in English Language Arts-

https://education.ohio.gov/Topics/Learning-in-Ohio/English-Language-Art/Resources-for-English-Language-Arts/High-Quality-Instructional-Materials-in-ELA#approved-reading-intervention-programs

NAACP Resolution on Dyslexia- https://naacp.org/resources/dyslexiaAmplify CKLA curriculum- https://amplify.comLiteracy Now interview with Karin Chenoweth- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Faccsgy-cpgOhio 2025 Science of Reading Audit: Statewide Report: https://dam.assets.ohio.gov/image/upload/highered.ohio.gov/science-of-reading/2025/Statewide_Report_2025_FINAL.pdfOhio Science of Reading Audit Metrics: https://dam.assets.ohio.gov/image/upload/highered.ohio.gov/ed-prep/Literacy/ODHE_Science_of_Reading_Audit_Metrics.pdf

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Parents for Reading Justice has teamed up with FULCRUM’s Kareem Weaver to bring you "Literacy Now, Together" — a podcast mini-series that takes a closer look at the reading crisis and explores real solutions with literacy leaders and families across the country.

About Brett Tingley: ⁠⁠https://parentsforreadingjustice.org/brett-tingley-bio⁠⁠

About Kareem Weaver: ⁠⁠https://tinyurl.com/KareemWeaverBio⁠⁠

About Parents for Reading Justice: ⁠⁠https://linktr.ee/parentsforreadingjustice⁠⁠

About FULCRUM:⁠⁠https://linktr.ee/fulcrumliteracy⁠⁠

DISCLAIMER: All information in this video is presented as our shared experience only, to help others understand our efforts and experience. Nothing presented herein should be construed as offering legal advice. We encourage everyone to seek professional legal advice for their circumstances. We welcome you to share your experiences with us on all matters relating to dyslexia as we are continuously learning new information to help push our cause to help as many people with dyslexia as possible. Thank you for your continued support!

In this episode of Literacy Now Together, Brett Tingley of Parents for Reading Justice and Kareem Weaver of FULCRUM talk with Mike Duffey, Chancellor of the Ohio Department of Higher Education, about Ohio’s bold effort to ensure that every new teacher enters the classroom prepared to teach children to read. Duffey explains how Governor Mike DeWine’s literacy initiative has extended beyond K-12 schools into higher education, requiring teacher preparation programs to align with the Science of Reading and eliminate discredited practices such as three-cueing. The conversation takes listeners inside Ohio’s unusually rigorous approach: 73 faculty-developed measures of evidence-based reading instruction, comprehensive audits of teacher preparation programs, public reporting of results, and real consequences for programs that fail to come into alignment. Duffey also discusses why higher education can be slow to change, why transparency and parent advocacy matter, and how bipartisan leadership can help reforms endure beyond a single administration. Connecting literacy to civil rights, workforce development, and economic opportunity, Duffey argues that lasting reform requires more than legislation: Ohio must build a culture in which evidence-based reading instruction becomes an enduring expectation. Ultimately, the discussion offers both a roadmap for other states seeking to strengthen teacher preparation and a reminder that every child, especially the most vulnerable, deserves a teacher equipped with the knowledge, skills, and passion to teach them to read.Social Media Handles:Facebook: @OhioHigherEdX: @OhioHigherEdLinkedIn: @Ohio-Department-of-Higher-EducationYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/OhioHigherEd Resources mentioned:ODHE Website: https://highered.ohio.gov/ODHE Science of Reading webpage: https://highered.ohio.gov/educators/academic-programs-policies/academic-program-approval/educator-preparation/science-of-reading/science-of-readingODHE 2025 Science of Reading Audit: Statewide Report: https://dam.assets.ohio.gov/image/upload/highered.ohio.gov/science-of-reading/2025/Statewide_Report_2025_FINAL.pdfODHE Science of Reading Audit Metrics: https://dam.assets.ohio.gov/image/upload/highered.ohio.gov/ed-prep/Literacy/ODHE_Science_of_Reading_Audit_Metrics.pdfThe Meadows Center For Preventing Educational Risk: https://meadowscenter.org/Dolly Parton's Imagination Library of Ohio: https://highered.ohio.gov/students/more-resources/imagination-librarySold A Story podcast: https://features.apmreports.org/sold-a-story/The Right to Read Film: https://www.therighttoreadfilm.org/____________________________________________________________Parents for Reading Justice has teamed up with FULCRUM’s Kareem Weaver to bring you "Literacy Now, Together" — a podcast mini-series that takes a closer look at the reading crisis and explores real solutions with literacy leaders and families across the country. Parents for Reading Justice is a nonprofit grassroots movement dedicated to ensuring every child learns to read by engaging parents and educators in adopting the science of teaching reading. Our mission is to activate, train, and guide parent groups to flip their school districts to evidence-based reading instruction. About Brett Tingley: ⁠⁠https://parentsforreadingjustice.org/brett-tingley-bio⁠⁠About Kareem Weaver: ⁠⁠https://tinyurl.com/KareemWeaverBio⁠⁠About Parents for Reading Justice: ⁠⁠https://linktr.ee/parentsforreadingjustice⁠⁠About FULCRUM:⁠⁠https://linktr.ee/fulcrumliteracy⁠⁠ DISCLAIMER: All information in this video is presented as our shared experience only, to help others understand our efforts and experience. Nothing presented herein should be construed as offering legal advice. We encourage everyone to seek professional legal advice for their circumstances. Thank you for your continued support!