In Response to: Governor Kathy Hochul’s SUNY announcement
At a moment when states across the country are advancing evidence-aligned reading policies, Governor Kathy Hochul’s announcement that the State University of New York (SUNY) will adopt a system-wide science of reading policy marks an important step forward for literacy in New York State.
Learning to read is complex. Learning to teach reading is equally complex. As literacy researcher Louisa Moats famously wrote: “Teaching reading is rocket science.”
Over the past several decades, research from multiple fields, including cognitive science, linguistics, psychology, and neuroscience, has deepened our understanding of how the human brain learns to read and how it should be taught. This vast, interdisciplinary body of work—referred to as the science of reading—provides educators with a clear, evidence-based foundation for helping students become proficient readers.
But research alone does not change outcomes. Preparation and implementation do. That’s why the preparation of future teachers is so important.
When pre-service teachers graduate with a strong understanding of how reading develops and how to teach it most effectively, they enter classrooms with the knowledge needed to support all learners, including students who are English learners, have dyslexia, or are having difficulty learning to read.
The new SUNY policy helps create that foundation across the state’s largest public university system. By aligning educator preparation programs (EPPs) with the science of reading, SUNY establishes that future teachers receive consistent, evidence-aligned preparation before they lead a classroom of their own.
This work also connects directly with efforts already underway across New York through The Path Forward initiative. Across Path Forward pilot campuses, faculty have been working to strengthen how reading instruction is taught within EPPs.
Educator preparation programs are approaching this work in different ways. Professors bring their individual expertise, local contexts, and creativity to their instruction. Alignment does not have to mean uniformity.
At the same time, having a shared foundation matters. Consistency benefits schools, teachers, and most importantly, students. Whether a future teacher graduates from Buffalo, Plattsburgh, or Oswego, they will enter classrooms equipped with a base of knowledge and skills to begin teaching reading effectively to all students.
As a national organization dedicated to advancing evidence-aligned reading instruction, The Reading League is proud to partner with SUNY and educator preparation programs across the state as this work moves forward. Real systems change requires collaboration. And it requires courage—the courage to align practice with evidence, even when it demands change.
On April 17, literacy leaders from across the state will gather at SUNY Albany for the Path Forward Conference to continue advancing this work together. Events like this provide an opportunity for faculty, policymakers, and practitioners to share what they are learning and continue strengthening the preparation of future educators.
New York’s children will have greater opportunities to thrive when their teachers are prepared with a strong foundation in the science of reading. When policy, preparation, and practice move in concert, we create the conditions for lasting change. And when we get reading right, the impact extends far beyond the classroom.
Dr. Maria Murray
President and CEO
