Contact
- Minnesota READ Act Professional Development Team
- mde.MNREADAct.MDE@state.mn.us
- 651-582-8800
Minnesota READ Act Professional Development Requirements Summary
Beginning July 1, 2024, each district and charter school must provide teachers and instructional support staff with responsibility for teaching reading with training on evidence-based reading instruction that is approved by the Department of Education. Please review the summary below for timelines and a list of educators required to complete one of the approved professional development programs.
Minnesota READ Act Professional Development Registration Requests
Registration for READ Act literacy professional development will be done through MDE and paid for through READ Act funds. District and charter schools will not pay for READ Act training when participating in this process. Please don’t contact the vendor directly.
Registration for Phase 1 educators (see below for definition of Phase 1 educators) is open until October 1, 2024. A district or charter school must provide access to training beginning July 1, 2024.
*For those districts and charter schools who are choosing LEXIA/LETRS, we acknowledge additional time (beyond the July 2025 completion deadline) will be needed to complete this course and extensions will be provided.
Registration process:
- District or charter school submits contact information for staff responsible for coordinating professional development for literacy educators and support staff. Please email the Professional Development team with contact information.
- After MDE updates the contact information, the district or charter school contact will receive an email to complete registration.
- Once registration is complete, district or charter school contact will be contacted by the requested professional development vendor to schedule training dates.
If you have questions about your district or charter school's professional development registration status, please email the Professional Development team with questions.
Approved Minnesota READ Act-Funded Professional Development Programs
CAREIALL: Advancing Language and Literacy –Center for Applied Research and Educational Improvement (CAREI University of Minnesota)
OL&LA: Online Language and Literacy Academy –Consortium on Reaching Excellence in Education (CORE)
LETRS: Language Essentials for Teachers of Reading and Spelling (Lexia)
LETRS, LETRS for Administrators, and LETRS for Early Childhood Educators
The Minnesota READ Act Legislative Professional Development Requirement
Professional development for Phase 1 educators* (completed by July 1, 2025):
- Participate in one of the MDE approved programs
- Submit certificate of completion with a passing score of 80% to district or charter school
Professional development requirements for Phase 2 educators** (completed by July 1, 2027):
Registration for Phase 2 educators will occur February–October, 2025.
- For grades 6–12 additional professional development options have not yet been approved. Details coming soon.
Professional Development Timeline
*Phase 1: Required staff to be completed by July 1, 2025
Districts and charters are required to provide access to professional development for Phase 1 educators by July 1, 2024, and can register for Professional Development February–October2024.
- PreK Classroom Educators–PreK educators include Voluntary Pre-Kindergarten/School Readiness Plus, Early Childhood Special Education (Part B/619) responsible for early literacy/reading instruction and School Readiness
- K–3 Classroom Educator (including ESL instructors who are responsible for reading instruction)
- Grades K–12 Reading Intervention Educators
- Grades K–12 Special Education Educators responsible for reading instruction
- Grades PreK–5 Curriculum Directors
- Grades PreK–5 Instructional support staff who provide reading support. (Additional guidance and information on training options will be available in Spring, 2024. Districts may choose to delay registration of Instructional Support Staff until more information is released.)
- Employees who select literacy instructional materials for grades PreK–5
- 4th and 5th grade (6th grade depending on the structure of your elementary school) classroom educators may be included in Phase 1, as literacy data indicates the need for foundational reading skill instruction in these grades
**Phase 2: Required staff (all other educators responsible for reading instruction) to be completed by July 1, 2027
Registration for Phase 2 staff Professional Development will be February–October2025.
- Grades 4–12 Classroom Educators responsible for reading instruction/ teaching the MN ELA Standards
- Grades 4–12 Educators who work with English learners (Licensed ELL teachers)
- Grades K– Age 21 Educators who work with students who qualify for the graduation incentives program under section 124D.68
- Grades 6–12 Instructional support staff who provide reading support
- Grades 6–12 Curriculum Directors
- Employees who select literacy instructional materials for Grades 6–12
Educators who have previously taken 3rd Edition LETRS or CORE training, before READ Act training was offered, do not need a waiver or to retake training.
More information on the approved Professional Development programs
Staff Development Supports Reading Instruction and Intervention Efforts
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