This story was produced as part of ThreeSixty Journalism’s 2026 Capitol Reporting Workshop for Minnesota youth, with financial support from the Saint Paul & Minnesota Foundation.
For Hennepin County Commissioner and former Minnesota State Representative Heather Edelson, the stakes of the state’s ongoing literacy debate are not merely academic—they are deeply personal. Growing up, Edelson navigated the educational system with undiagnosed dyslexia, a condition that turned the simple act of reading into a daily gauntlet of frustration and self-doubt.
“I didn’t really read well until probably late middle school,” Edelson recalled. “It was really challenging.”
Her childhood struggle is a mirror held up to a statewide crisis that has quietly simmered for over a decade. According to data from Compass Education, literacy proficiency rates for Minnesota third graders have plummeted from nearly 56% in 2013 to approximately 46% today. This decline, which has sparked alarm among parents, educators, and policymakers, has transformed literacy from a standard education topic into the focal point of the Minnesota legislative agenda.
The Evolution of the READ Act: A Legislative Timeline
The road to the current legislative battle began long before the READ Act was introduced. When Edelson was elected to the Minnesota House of Representatives in 2018, she began scrutinizing the state’s existing framework, specifically the “Read Well by Third Grade” law. To Edelson, the statute was fundamentally flawed because it prioritized a snapshot of proficiency at the third-grade level rather than fostering a robust, scaffolded literacy development process that spanned a student’s entire academic career.
The legislative landscape shifted dramatically following the 2022 midterm elections, when the Minnesota Democratic-Farmer-Labor (DFL) party secured full control of the state government. This political opening provided the momentum necessary to push for systemic reform. Edelson partnered with Sen. Erin Maye Quade (DFL-Apple Valley) to author the READ Act, a comprehensive effort to align Minnesota’s instruction with the “science of reading”—an evidence-based approach centered on phonics and phonemic awareness.
During the drafting process, the conversation expanded beyond just pedagogy. Educators voiced deep concerns regarding the quality and representation within existing curricula. Edelson noted that teachers highlighted problematic materials that contained inaccurate or stereotypical depictions of African American and Native American children. This feedback loop ensured that the resulting legislation was not just about how students learn to read, but what they are reading.
In 2023, Governor Tim Walz signed the initial version of the READ Act into law, backed by a $70 million appropriation to help schools transition to evidence-based programs. However, the work did not end there. Following the initial implementation, Edelson and Maye Quade solicited further feedback from the front lines of the classroom. This collaborative approach led to the 2024 passage of the "READ Act 2.0," which provided additional, targeted funding specifically for teacher training.
The Science of Reading in the Classroom
The shift mandated by the READ Act represents a departure from traditional "whole language" or "balanced literacy" approaches, which critics argue often rely on guessing based on context clues rather than decoding. The new framework emphasizes structured literacy—a systematic, explicit way of teaching how letters represent sounds.
Julie Cronin, a second-grade teacher in the Robbinsdale school district, has seen the transition firsthand. She points to the introduction of programs like Bridge to Read and LETRS as a turning point. These tools provide teachers with a roadmap to teach word study, guiding students through the complexities of breaking apart words, blending sounds, and mastering linguistic rules.
“They get it. They get the rules,” Cronin said, noting that students who previously struggled to decode unfamiliar terms are now exhibiting newfound confidence.
State Sen. Steve Cwodzinski (DFL-Eden Prairie), chair of the Senate Education Policy Committee, views the policy as an unmitigated success based on his own observations. “When we visit grade schools and you see the kids reading words that I didn’t know until I was in college, it’s kind of amazing,” he said. “So, it’s working.”
Analyzing the Data: A Crisis of Proficiency
The urgency behind these legislative maneuvers is supported by sobering statistics. The decline in reading proficiency among third graders is not an isolated incident; it is a systemic trend that correlates with long-term educational outcomes. Research consistently demonstrates that students who do not reach reading proficiency by the end of third grade are significantly more likely to struggle in subsequent subjects, experience lower graduation rates, and face challenges in the workforce.
While the state has invested millions into teacher training and new curricula, the "achievement gap" remains a stubborn obstacle. Minnesota’s education system continues to grapple with disparities in literacy outcomes based on race, socioeconomic status, and disability status. Proponents of the READ Act argue that the law is the first step toward closing these gaps by providing every student—regardless of their school district—with access to high-quality, scientifically backed instruction.
The Conservative Counter-Proposal: The Debate Over Retention
Despite the enthusiasm from many educators, the READ Act remains a source of partisan friction. Republican lawmakers have challenged the current iteration of the law, arguing that it lacks the necessary accountability measures to ensure struggling students do not fall through the cracks.
Sens. Michael Holmstrom, Jordan Rasmusson, and Julia Coleman have introduced the “READ Act Interventions” bill, a proposal that would fundamentally change the stakes for students who fail to meet proficiency standards. The bill would mandate that public schools develop individualized learning plans for students falling behind. More controversially, it would require schools to hold students back a grade if it is determined to be in the student’s “best interest.”
Senator Holmstrom argues that the current system does a disservice to students by passing them into higher grades where the curriculum becomes increasingly rigorous. “They’re not going to keep up if we let them,” Holmstrom said, noting that he has spoken with teachers who feel frustrated that they were previously unable to hold back students who clearly lacked foundational reading skills.
Differing Philosophies on Student Development
The proposal for mandatory retention has met stiff resistance from both policymakers and educators who argue that the policy is outdated and potentially damaging.
Mackenzie Mohen-VonAhnen, a teacher at Centennial Elementary in Richfield, warned that the psychological toll of grade retention often outweighs the academic benefits. “That would be harmful for students, you know, like, mentally and socially,” she said.
This opposition is shared by Edelson, who draws once again on her own life experience. Having been held back in the third grade during her own education, Edelson remains convinced that retention is an ineffective, and often scarring, tool for intervention. She deliberately excluded such provisions when crafting the original READ Act, favoring early, intensive support over punitive grade-level repetition.
Implications for the Future of Minnesota Education
The clash over the READ Act Interventions bill highlights the broader ideological divide at the Minnesota State Capitol. Education policy, once a domain of bipartisan cooperation, has become a high-stakes battleground where fundamental disagreements about state oversight, local control, and the nature of student accountability collide.
With the state legislature currently operating under a slim majority, the path forward for significant changes remains narrow. Political analysts suggest that while the GOP proposal has sparked a necessary conversation about accountability, it faces significant headwinds in a session characterized by tight party-line voting.
Ultimately, the success of the READ Act will be measured in the coming years by the literacy scores of Minnesota’s students. As the state moves toward a more standardized, science-based approach to reading, the focus will likely remain on whether these systemic changes can truly reach the students who, like Edelson years ago, struggle to make sense of the printed word.
For now, the state is caught in a delicate balance: continuing to refine the implementation of the READ Act while navigating the political pressures of a divided government. As the debate continues, the goal remains singular: ensuring that every child in Minnesota, from the early grades through graduation, has the foundational skill of reading to build a successful future.
