AN ACT RELATING TO EDUCATION -- RHODE ISLAND LITERACY AND DROPOUT PREVENTION ACT (Redefines dyslexia to mean a specific learning disability characterized by difficulties in word reading and/or spelling that involve accuracy, speed, or both and vary depending on the orthography.)

H7909

2026 -- H 7909
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STATE OF RHODE ISLAND
IN GENERAL ASSEMBLY
JANUARY SESSION, A.D. 2026
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A N A C T
RELATING TO EDUCATION -- RHODE ISLAND LITERACY AND DROPOUT
PREVENTION ACT

Introduced By:
Representatives O'Brien, Shallcross Smith, Solomon, Alzate, Baginski,
Furtado, Voas, Serpa, Biah, and Dawson

Date Introduced:
February 27, 2026

Referred To:
House Education
It is enacted by the General Assembly as follows:
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SECTION 1. Section 16-67-2 of the General Laws in Chapter 16-67 entitled "Rhode Island
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Literacy and Dropout Prevention Act [See Title 16 Chapter 97 — The Rhode Island Board of
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Education Act]" is hereby amended to read as follows:
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16-67-2. The literacy program.
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(a) Activities under this section shall include strategies to improve the performance of
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students in mathematics, reading and writing, and to specifically address issues of dyslexia. Such
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activities must be founded on a scientific research base, as described in the No Child Left Behind
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Act of 2001, title I, part B, § 1208 (20 U.S.C. § 6368). Reading instruction to improve the reading
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skills of all students in the early grades (specifically kindergarten (K) through to and including
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grade five (5)) shall be consistent with the council on elementary and secondary education’s reading
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policy. This legislation requires that the following six (6) activities, which comprise the literacy
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program, be conducted:
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(1) Screening for all children first entering school. All school districts that provide
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elementary education are required to screen all children prior to, or upon, their first entry to school
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to determine their level of educational readiness. All children are required to participate in this
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screening. Screening shall address the child’s educational development and shall be used to
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determine whether he or she is educationally disadvantaged in terms of readiness for instruction in
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the literacy skills of reading, writing, speaking, listening, or mathematics.

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(2) Literacy focus in instruction in kindergarten through grade three (3) for all students. All
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school districts that provide elementary education shall focus their kindergarten through grade three
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(3) instruction for all students on literacy: reading, writing, speaking, listening, and mathematics.
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All instruction shall be geared to helping students achieve the outcomes in literacy that have been
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specified by the commissioner of elementary and secondary education. School districts are
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encouraged to consider reducing class size to no more than fifteen (15) students as one means to
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achieving these outcomes. School districts will be held accountable for student achievement of the
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literacy outcomes.
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(3)(i) Supplementary literacy instruction for educationally disadvantaged students in
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grades kindergarten through twelve (12).
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(ii) Supplementary literacy (reading, writing, speaking, listening, and mathematics)
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instruction may be required for educationally disadvantaged students. The commissioner of
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elementary and secondary education shall stipulate for each school district the specific cutoff points
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and the grades for required service each year. Services must be provided first to students who are
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most educationally disadvantaged. Services shall focus on instruction in reading, writing, speaking,
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listening, and mathematics. Program emphasis shall be as follows:
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(A) Intensive development in literacy. Kindergarten through grade three (3).
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(B) Early intervention in literacy. Grades four (4) through six (6).
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(C) Remediation in literacy. Grades seven (7) through eight (8).
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(D) Intensive remediation in literacy. Grades nine (9) through twelve (12).
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(iii) School districts will be held accountable for student achievement of the literacy
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outcomes.
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(4) Dropout prevention programs. Programs shall address the academic, social, or personal
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needs of potential dropouts. Projects shall be selected at the discretion of the commissioner of
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elementary and secondary education.
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(5) State-level program support. Activities shall provide for necessary planning and
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administrative functions and for a broadly representative advisory council.
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(6) Dyslexia-targeted assistance. The literacy program shall also include assistance to
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students by providing strategies that formally address dyslexia, when appropriate. In addition, the
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department of elementary and secondary education shall offer to school districts, at no cost to the
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school district or to participants in the training, professional development services to enhance the
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skills of elementary teachers in the use of evidence-based strategies to improve the literacy skills
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of students with dyslexia.
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(b) As used in this section, the term “dyslexia” means a specific
and significant impairment

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in the development of reading, including, but not limited to, phonemic awareness, phonics, fluency,
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vocabulary, and comprehension that is not solely accounted for by intellectual disability, sensory
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disability or impairment, or lack of appropriate instruction.

learning disability characterized by
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difficulties in word reading and/or spelling that involve accuracy, speed, or both and vary
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depending on the orthography. These difficulties occur along a continuum of severity and persist
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even with instruction that is effective for the individual’s peers. The causes of dyslexia are complex
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and involve combinations of genetic, neurobiological, and environmental influences that interact
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throughout development. Underlying difficulties with phonological and morphological processing
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are common but not universal, and early oral language weaknesses often foreshadow literacy
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challenges. Secondary consequences include reading comprehension problems and reduced reading
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and writing experience that can impede growth in language, knowledge, written expression, and
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overall academic achievement. Psychological well-being and employment opportunities also may
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be affected. Although identification and targeted instruction are important at any age, language and
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literacy support before and during the early years of education is particularly effective.
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SECTION 2. This act shall take effect upon passage.
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EXPLANATION
BY THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL
OF
A N A C T
RELATING TO EDUCATION -- RHODE ISLAND LITERACY AND DROPOUT
PREVENTION ACT
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This act would redefine dyslexia to mean a specific learning disability characterized by
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difficulties in word reading and/or spelling that involve accuracy, speed, or both and vary
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depending on the orthography.
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This act would take effect upon passage.
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