FRANKFORT, Ky. (WBKO) – The Kentucky Department of Education (KDE) has been awarded a five-year, nearly $55 million State Literacy Development (CLSD) grant from the U.S. Department of Education.

According to the press release, the funding will be used to advance literacy skills for preschool through 12th grade. Emphasis will be placed on disadvantaged children, including children living in poverty, English language learners and children with disabilities.

“This is the largest federal CLSD grant Kentucky has ever received,” Education Commissioner Robbie Fletcher said in a news release. “Being awarded this grant is an honor, not only because there were the most applicants in the program’s history, but also because a panel of literacy experts scored our application so highly. We are excited about the opportunities this grant will provide in developing literacy skills in Kentucky.”

Kentucky Comprehensive Literacy 2025 (KyCL 25), formerly known as the CLSD discretionary grant program, will provide competitive funding to districts to strengthen high-quality instructional resources (HQIR) and curriculum-based professional learning for all grade levels.

KyCL 25 will focus on raising students’ literacy levels through four project objectives:

• Teaching staff will use evidence-based literacy HQIRs to provide coherent and aligned instruction to all students.
• Teaching staff will use evidence-based literacy HQIRs to support struggling readers to close the achievement gap for target populations in a cycle of continuous improvement.
• Teaching staff will be engaged in sustained, aligned, work-integrated and high-quality, curriculum-based professional learning focused on a literacy HQIR.
• Schools will increase family involvement in their students’ literacy development and awareness of resources to assist with additional literacy instruction at home.

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