MS HB857

Expands Mississippi's literacy program from grades K-3 to include grades 4-8 with evidence-based intervention strategies grounded in the science of reading.

Requires the State Department of Education to provide professional development and job-embedded coaching for teachers, literacy coaches, interventionists, and other personnel serving grades 4-8, including training on phonological awareness, decoding, fluency, vocabulary, and comprehension.

Mandates development of rules for literacy intervention programs including universal screeners administered three times yearly, diagnostic tools, and a credit-bearing structured literacy course for grades 6-8.

Prohibits use of three-cueing systems (meaning, structure, syntax, and visual cues) in intervention resources and instructional materials.

Requires annual reporting to the Legislature by December 1 on the number of identified struggling readers, students receiving interventions, participating schools, and evidence of improved literacy outcomes.

Effective July 1, 2025.