| HISTORY
With a goal of achieving 100% literacy among Alabama public school
students, the Alabama State Department of Education initiated the
Alabama Reading Initiative training in the summer of 1998. Training,
administered by the Alabama State Department of Education, was conducted
that summer for the faculties of 16 schools in the state.
In the summer of 1999 the number of schools to be trained expanded
to 64 and the administration of the training was turned over to
Alabama’s 11 regional in-service centers. Because The University
of Alabama received a $50,000 grant from Royal Cup Coffee to conduct
ARI training, however, the grant recipient, Dr. Lea McGee, administered
the 1999 training at The University of Alabama, rather than the
In-Service Center.
Since the summer of 2000 the Regional In-Service Centers have administered
all Alabama Reading Initiative summer training programs. To date
there are 511 schools in Alabama that have received ARI initial
training.
SERVICE
The University of Alabama In-Service Center has assisted the Alabama
Reading Initiative in administering all training of schools in its
geographic region. Regional summer training programs have been held
in Tuscaloosa, Livingston, Gordo, and Linden.
LITERACY
DEMONSTRATION SITES IN THE UA IN-SERVICE CENTER REGION
The following links contain the list of schools in the region served
by The University of Alabama Regional In-Service Center whose faculties
have received ARI training and are, consequently, Literacy Demonstration
Sites: ARI Schools, ARFI
Schools.
FOLLOW-UP
SERVICES
In order to provide additional follow-up training and support to
ARI-trained teachers, a full-time reading specialist has been placed
at each regional in-service center by the Alabama State Department
of Education. The functions of the reading specialist are: to coach
area ARI-trained teachers in implementing strategies taught during
the summer training; to plan and deliver continuing professional
development training for these teachers; and, to secure resources
for their schools—known as Literacy Demonstration Sites (LDS).
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