New York is finally requiring teacher preparation programs to train future educators in the science of reading. This is a real, overdue step forward for the thousands of kids sitting in classrooms right now who still aren't being taught to read using methods that actually work.

But as written, the proposal has two gaps that could quietly undercut it. Middle and high school teachers are left out entirely, even though struggling readers don't stop struggling at third grade. They carry that gap into every content-area classroom for the rest of their schooling. And the accountability structure has a seven-year blind spot: programs aren't required to prove they're actually following the new rules until the next full review cycle, which could mean nearly a decade with no public way to check whether any of this is happening in practice.

We've seen this pattern before. Good intentions without real enforcement is how districts across New York ended up claiming SoR alignment on paper while still running balanced literacy in their classrooms. We can't let the same thing happen at the level that trains every future teacher in this state.

The Board of Regents is taking comments until September 27, 2026, before this rule is finalized in October. They need to hear that parents, advocates and educators across New York are watching, and that we expect this fixed before it's locked in for the next generation of teachers.

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