Building Strong Readers: How the Trump Administration is Supercharging Evidence-Based Literacy to Combat Reading Crisis

America is facing a literacy emergency that is reshaping the trajectory of an entire generation. National reading scores - long a bellwether for student success - have dropped to historic lows. Twelfth graders today have the lowest reading scores ever recorded, and nearly 70% of 4th and 8th graders cannot read proficiently. A recent international assessment revealed America's lowest-performing students are falling further behind - and have suffered a loss of learning in reading equivalent to nearly a year and a half of instruction compared to 2015.

In response, the Trump Department of Education (the Department) has made literacy a central priority across its grantmaking, research agenda, and technical assistance efforts. Federal dollars are no longer flowing on autopilot. Nor is taxpayer money being expended to drive the divisive DEI efforts of the prior Administration that detract from fundamental priorities like literacy. Instead, the Department is focusing its investments on proven approaches grounded in the Science of Reading. By strengthening state capacity in teacher preparation for evidence-based literacy and prioritizing materials aligned with phonics instruction, the Trump Administration is empowering states to overhaul their literacy ecosystems.

Investing in Proven Solutions

Across multiple grant programs, the Department is leveraging the Secretary's literacy priority to fund approaches that have a demonstrated impact on student reading nationwide. Although these funds would be best spent directly by states, the Trump Administration is ensuring that all taxpayer dollars are spent responsibly and directed toward meaningful learning. To the end, existing grant funding will support the Secretary's literacy priority through:

• Education Innovation and Research (EIR) Grants: These grants support furthered research on and in support of tutoring models, effective instructional programs, and professional development aligned with the Science of Reading. Over the past two years, the Department has awarded nearly $500 million through 49 grants. Of these grants, a record 17 were awarded to state educational agencies, enabling them to take the lead in researching, implementing, and scaling effective literacy practices statewide.

• Teacher Quality Partnership (TQP) Grants: These grants are intended to help colleges and school districts prepare teachers to deliver strong literacy instruction. In the coming weeks, the Department anticipates awarding 12 new TQP grants, totaling roughly $70 million.

• Supporting Effective Educator Development (SEED Grants) Grants: These grants support educator certification pathways and literacy coaching. In the coming weeks, the Department anticipates awarding 16 new SEED grants, totaling roughly $90 million.

• Innovative Approaches to Literacy (IAL) Grants: These grants help improve early literacy from birth through grade 5 - including expanding book access, boosting at-home literacy, and building teacher skills. This week, leveraging the Secretary's priority in evidence-based literacy, the Department awarded four new IAL grants, totaling more than $16 million.

• Comprehensive Literacy State Development (CLSD) Grants: These grants support states and other jurisdictions to develop statewide literacy plans, improve teacher prep, buy high-quality materials, and deploy literacy coaches. This year, the Department provided $256 million in non-competing continuation awards to 24 states, the Outlying Areas, and the Bureau of Indian Education.

• National Center on Academic Interventions: The Department is awarding $3.7 million for this grant program which provides support for improving outcomes for students with disabilities, with evidence-based literacy instruction as a required component.

Strengthening Research & Tools for Educators

The Department's research arm (IES) is refocusing its largest Fiscal Year 2027 grants to fund actionable projects in areas of national need identified by the states, with literacy as a core priority. At the same time, IES Regional Educational Labs have developed practical toolkits for teachers - covering K-3 reading comprehension, differentiating early reading instruction, and interventions for grades 6-8. These tools give educators ready to use strategies that are backed by evidence.

The Bottom Line

The Trump Administration is directing federal dollars toward strategies proven to help children read - and giving states the tools, flexibility, and support to rebuild strong literacy outcomes. Rather than spending hard-earned taxpayer dollars on ineffective initiatives or DEI-laden programs, the Trump Administration is making sure every dollar spent supports effective, evidence-based literacy instruction.

Click here to read more about the Department's efforts to help states lead in education, including finding innovative solutions to improving literacy.