Opinion: Michigan’s literacy crisis is real, but regional collaboration offers hope
This opinion piece was written by Michael Haynes, Director of Instructional Services for Char-Em ISD
In Northern Michigan, something promising is happening around elementary reading.
Charlevoix-Emmet Intermediate School District, serving 11 public school districts across 2.5 counties at the top of Michigan’s Lower Peninsula, is leading a region-wide effort to address one of the most urgent challenges in education today – early literacy.
In partnership with local districts and statewide organizations, Char-Em ISD is helping bring educators together around a shared goal: Ensuring every student becomes a confident, capable reader. By fall 2025, each of the traditional public schools in our region is expected to be engaged in this work.
Like much of the country, Michigan is seeing too many students struggle with reading. On the most recent National Assessment of Educational Progress, only 32% of fourth graders nationally – and fewer than half of Michigan’s – scored proficient in reading. By eighth grade, the numbers drop even further. These are more than just statistics; they are a call to action.
Reading proficiency in the early grades is directly tied to long-term success in school, work, and life. It’s the one skill that opens every other door. Literacy is not just a subject, it’s a gateway to opportunity. And right now, too many students don’t have the keys.
The good news is that Michigan is not standing still. Across the state, more educators and leaders understand that real change requires more than good intentions. It requires aligned action. And in Char-Em ISD, we’re beginning to see what that looks like.
This is not another program; it’s a shift in mindset, backed by a system of support that includes literacy coaches, early childhood experts, and special education teacher consultants. Districts across Char-Em are adopting literacy frameworks to clarify what will be taught at each grade level, ensuring consistency from classroom to classroom. Teachers are establishing shared instructional commitments, honoring autonomy while agreeing on what should be tight (common materials and practices) and what can remain loose (professional discretion). Teams are engaging in short, focused improvement cycles, identifying one challenge and working together over 6-8 weeks to address it, then moving on to the next. Importantly, principals and school leaders are learning how to support staff with indicators of instructional practices and strategies that empower rather than micromanage.
These system components help create the conditions for great teaching to take root. When educators work collaboratively and share the belief that they can make a difference, student outcomes improve. Researcher John Hattie calls this “collective teacher efficacy,” and it’s one of the most powerful factors in student learning.
Real, lasting change doesn’t come from top-down mandates or one-off initiatives. It comes from focusing people, resources, and energy around goals, aligning instruction, supporting educators, and using data to drive improvement.
The support of the Michigan Legislature, along with statewide leadership from the Michigan Association of Intermediate School Administrators and the Michigan Elementary and Middle School Principals Association, has been important. Their partnership ensures that this work is not isolated but connected to a broader statewide movement – one that honors local context while building a common vision for literacy success.
If we build the structures, systems, and shared commitments needed to support high-quality reading instruction in every school – not just a few – we can rewrite the story. We can show students we believe in them and back that belief with action.
The stakes are high. But if our region’s work proves anything, it’s that when school leaders, educators, policymakers, and partners come together around a clear, urgent goal, progress is not only possible – it’s already happening.
By Michael Haynes, Director of Instructional Services, Char-Em Intermediate School District