September always brings a sense of possibility. 

Across Wisconsin, students are returning to classrooms; educators are welcoming new learners, and families are settling into the routines of a
new school year. It’s also when so much of the work we talk about throughout the year becomes real: helping every child become a strong, confident reader. 

There is a lot happening in literacy across our state this year. 

Wisconsin schools are continuing to strengthen reading instruction. Our Act 20 Early Literacy Coaching Program is bringing additional support directly to schools across the state. And at the Department of Public Instruction, we are working to complete Wisconsin’s Statewide Literacy Plan (WSLP), which will serve as a roadmap for how we work together to improve literacy outcomes across Wisconsin. 

While these efforts may have different names, they share one goal: ensuring every Wisconsin learner engages in literacy and develops the knowledge, skills, and confidence to thrive in school, work, and life as a reader, writer, communicator, and critical thinker. 

That goal belongs to all of us. 

Much of the work of learning to read happens in classrooms, but the experiences that shape our students as readers happen everywhere. Families, libraries, community organizations, and schools all play a role. So do the everyday moments when children see the adults around them reading, writing, asking questions, and learning something new. 

Our responsibility as a state is to make sure educators and schools have what they need to do this work well and to keep our focus on the students at the center of it. 

As we begin this school year, that is what I hope we remember. Our conversations about assessments, policies, programs, and plans ultimately come back to the experiences of Wisconsin students and the opportunities we are creating for them. 

We have important work ahead, and I am excited to continue doing it alongside educators, families, and communities across Wisconsin. 

Here’s to a year filled with reading, learning, and possibilities. 

Warmly,

Kaylee Jackson
Director, Office of Literacy
Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction