L I T E R A C Y P L A N 2 0 1 5

THE NEVADA STATE LITERACY PLAN
Essential 1: Leadership and Sustainability
As one of the above-mentioned organizations, Nevada’s Department of Education (in partnership with the Governor’s Office) has
already begun to take a lead in early childhood literacy. Two historic developments recently occurred during this past fall of 2014. First,
the Nevada Department of Education established Nevada’s very first Office of Early Learning and Development and, second, Nevada
became a recipient of a U.S. Dept. of Education and U.S. Dept. of Health and Human Services’ Preschool Development Grant. It will be
essential to watch the development and implementation of this multi-million dollar preschool grant over the next five years. Its efforts will
undoubtedly pave the road for sustainability of Nevada’s entire Pre-K future. Players engaged in both of these exciting new ventures will
undoubtedly become pivotal participants in the establishment of an early literacy network for Nevada’s youngest learners.
Methods for establishing an effective early childhood literacy network in Nevada have been identified by national experts.
Strategies for successfully establishing leadership capacity within the early childhood arena have been identified by Kristie Kauerz
and Julia Coffman (2013) in their publication titled Framework for Planning, Implementing, and Evaluating PreK-3 rd Grade
Approaches. They recommend the following collective actions:
aligning a cross-sector of mechanisms, resources, and structures to support a shared vision of literacy;
building cultures and organizational structures that ensure high quality interactions for all children to promote
and strengthen school readiness and success;
understanding and committing to building teacher effectiveness in the use of all Nevada standards, researchbased
developmentally appropriate instruction, and assessment aligned for instructional coherence in academics
and social-emotional skills;
establishing and promoting environments of collaboration and engagement which support the health and
wellness of children and adults;
facilitating effective use of current, relevant, and high-quality data from multiple sources to inform and improve systems;
engaging families as educational partners;
ensuring every child has access to a continuity of services and education needed for school success.
At the Site Level
As noted in the above introduction, the critical role of early childhood education in America has moved to the frontlines of
educational leadership. Indeed, Dorothy Strickland (NIERR, 2013) captured it well when she discussed how “Literacy achievement
is at the forefront of accountability in our country. For better or worse, schools, teachers, and children are measured in large part by
student performance in reading and writing. Attention to early literacy as a function of school readiness is reflected in early childhood
education classrooms and in the public policy arena.” Many researchers have begun to investigate what constitutes an effective style
of leadership at the early childhood site. In her book, Leadership in Early Childhood, Jillian Rodd (2013) provides a clear and succinct
model of leadership at this level of education. She writes, “Today, effective leadership in early childhood is associated with the collective
efforts of teams of educators who work together to influence and inspire each other rather than the efforts of one single person
who focuses on getting the job done”. Rodd goes on to describe how true leadership is not management.
Rodd’s description of an effective leadership model for the early childhood arena includes the:
“Fostering of a culture of trust, developing an openness to learning, encouraging and stimulating learning, communicating
aims and visions with clarity and mission, direction, and inspiration rather than designing and implementing plans,
getting things done, and ensuring that other people work efficiently.”
Birth to Pre-K Literacy Plan
(BOARD OF REGENTS 12/03/15 & 12/04/15) Ref. BOR-25, Page 26 of 241
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