Dr. Louise Waters (left) and Dr. Kelly Carvajal-Hagemen (right), education leaders featured in the Literacy Now Together podcast on district literacy turnarounds.
Proven strategies from Oakland Unified’s 7-year literacy surge and Seaford’s turnaround – practical lessons for superintendents and district teams.
OAKLAND, CA, UNITED STATES, April 10, 2026 /EINPresswire.com/ — Literacy Now Together Podcast Episode Delivers Rare, Practical Strategies for Superintendents and District Teams Facing Teacher Turnover, Diverse Learners, and Persistent Achievement Gaps
In a timely new episode of the Literacy Now Together miniseries, two veteran education leaders unpack the hard-won lessons behind two notable district-level literacy improvements that many systems are still searching for.
Dr. Louise Waters played a central role in Oakland Unified School District’s turnaround. For seven consecutive years, Oakland Unified was the fastest-gaining urban district in California in reading achievement, rising from proficiency rates mostly below 30 percent in a highly diverse, multilingual urban system with extreme teacher turnover (63 percent of elementary teachers new to the profession).
Dr. Kelly Carvajal-Hagemen, currently Chief Academic Officer for Milford School District in Delaware and a former member of the leadership team in Seaford, contributed to Seaford’s progress in moving beyond long-term “Focus Plus” status under No Child Left Behind. She is now applying similar evidence-based principles in Milford, a diverse rural/suburban district working to close opportunity gaps.
Hosted by Kareem Weaver of Fulcrum and Brett Tingley of Parents for Reading Justice, the conversation delivers straightforward, actionable strategies that districts can implement immediately: building system-wide coherence around structured literacy, strengthening principal instructional leadership, protecting core reading time, and supporting both new and veteran teachers — all while treating literacy improvement as a matter of equity and social justice.
“We just wanted the kids to read better,” Waters recalls of the determination that drove Oakland’s multi-year effort. The leaders emphasize that lasting change requires district-wide alignment rather than isolated classroom heroics.
The episode is especially valuable for superintendents, chief academic officers, curriculum directors, and school boards seeking proven approaches that delivered measurable gains in high-need urban and rural settings.
Listen Now to the full episode featuring Dr. Louise Waters and Dr. Kelly Carvajal-Hagemen:
YouTube: https://tinyurl.com/DistrictSuccess
Spotify: https://tinyurl.com/DistrictTurnaround
Apple Podcasts: https://tinyurl.com/DistrictTurnaroundApple
(Available on all major platforms.)
For more information, free resources, and the complete Literacy Now series, visit parentsforreadingjustice.org.
About Parents for Reading Justice
Parents for Reading Justice produces Literacy Now to empower parents and communities to advocate for the science of reading so every child learns to read. The Literacy Now Together miniseries is a collaboration with Fulcrum. All resources (including the film Our Dyslexic Children) are free because literacy is a right, not a privilege.
Kareem Weaver
FULCRUM
info@fulcrumliteracy.org
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