Every K-5 reading and language arts teacher in Birmingham Public Schools and Bloomfield Hills Schools must complete science-of-reading literacy training by the 2031-32 school year under a law Gov. Gretchen Whitmer signed Tuesday, July 21.
House Bill 5697, sponsored by state Rep. Nancy DeBoer, R-Holland, targets Michigan's dismal reading scores: only 38.9% of third graders are proficient on the M-STEP, and Michigan ranks 44th nationally in fourth-grade reading on the National Assessment of Educational Progress.
"The budget guarantees that not some, not most, but all reading teachers in Michigan complete training to teach students the science of reading methods like phonics," Whitmer said at a budget press event in Southfield on July 21.
The training emphasizes phonics-based instruction, grounded in research on how the brain learns to read. The law requires the Michigan Department of Education to approve at least two vendors each year, though lawmakers and state Superintendent Glenn Maleyko have publicly named LETRS, offered by vendor Lexia, as the primary program. LETRS training typically takes two years. Teachers with interim teaching certificates are exempt.
The mandate is contingent on the Legislature providing what the law calls "sufficient" funding. The state has already spent $44 million on voluntary LETRS training, and the new education budget adds $75 million more. As of July 1, 5,684 Michigan educators were in LETRS training and 7,460 had completed it, according to the Michigan Department of Education.
Local districts already investing in literacy
Both local districts have moved toward phonics-focused instruction ahead of the mandate. Bloomfield Hills Schools' board approved the 95 Core Literacy curriculum on Monday, March 23, 2026, spending $423,480 from Section 35m Literacy Grant funds. The 95 Core program is a phonics-based curriculum separate from the LETRS teacher-training program required under the new law.
Birmingham Public Schools received $187,500, the maximum award, through the state's competitive READ Innovation Grant in fall 2025.
Neither district has publicly commented on how it plans to comply with HB 5697 or how many of its K-5 teachers have already completed LETRS training.
Broader literacy push
Whitmer also signed House Bill 5646 on July 21, requiring the state superintendent to approve teacher preparation programs and grant certificates only when literacy requirements are met. In May, she created the Every Child Reads Champions Council, a 16-member task force whose appointees have not yet been named.
Under laws passed in 2024, Michigan districts must already teach reading using evidence-based methods and screen students for dyslexia traits beginning in the 2027-28 school year.
House Speaker Matt Hall, R-Richland Twp., framed the training mandate as one piece of a three-part literacy strategy. "We're going to need all three: accountability, spending, and training the teachers on the right curriculum, phonics, in order to improve our literacy," Hall said in June 2026 while pushing to reinstate a third-grade reading retention law.
What families should watch for
Parents can monitor school board agendas, posted on each district's website, for updates on how many teachers still need training, which vendor each district selects, and whether teachers will receive stipends or release time to complete the two-year program. The deadline is the 2031-32 school year.
