William & Mary Literacy Leadership Program

Ensuring that all students develop high levels of literacy requires schools to make a concerted, coordinated effort to improve students’ proficiency as readers, writers, and critical and creative thinkers. Teacher expertise, more than any other variable, accounts for increases in student achievement in literacy; therefore, schools must engage in the leadership work that makes strong literacy instruction possible. Literacy leaders are master teachers who provide essential leadership for the school’s overall literacy program and play a key role in leading and supporting teachers to become more effective practitioners in literacy teaching. This leadership includes creating and supervising a long-term staff development program that supports both the development and implementation of the literacy program over months and years.