Investing in the School Leaders Behind the Readers
How Oakland teachers and principals are becoming even stronger literacy leaders
Oakland educators at the CORE Learning Leadership for Literacy Institute, June 2026
For most elementary school principals and teachers, the day is full before it even begins. Finding time to plan, review what's working, and get on the same page with colleagues can feel elusive, but it’s what educators need to best support their students. It’s exactly why Eat. Learn. Play. invests in sustained professional development for Oakland's literacy educators, because strengthening the capacity and knowledge of leaders creates better outcomes for Oakland’s kids. To date, Eat. Learn. Play. has supported over 270 Oakland educators with professional development offerings.
In June 2026, over 30 school leaders from across Oakland Unified School District (OUSD) gathered for the CORE Learning Leadership for Literacy Institute, a two-day professional development training focused on building knowledge, strategy, and connection. Eat. Learn. Play. previously supported OUSD in June 2025 to provide this offering to 35 principals and teacher leaders. After receiving overwhelmingly positive feedback from participants on how it prepared them to be stronger literacy leaders at their school sites, we are proud to support this offering again this year.
The Science of Reading
Literacy approaches at OUSD are grounded in the “science of reading”: an evidence-based approach to language and literacy instruction. The two-day training was facilitated by CORE Learning, which developed the approach. For Julissa Lambert-Yank, Principal at ACORN Woodland Elementary, the science of reading gives her and her team research-backed data on how children actually learn to read. The training gave her the tools to audit her school curriculum and identifywhere to grow to meet her students’ needs. For ACORN students, that means vocabulary instruction, an area that Julissa believes could accelerate her students’ learning.
Building Systems to Foster Learning
Beyond grounding leaders in science-based instruction, the institute gives OUSD staff time to fully explore what it would look like to put these approaches at their schools.
District and school leaders identify the systems that scaffold effective literacy instruction, such as scheduling systems, professional learning for educators, and the variety of supports available to both teachers and students. This process helps leaders understand what high-quality literacy instruction can look like for the students they serve when all components are working in tandem.
Participants then build 90-day plans that turn goals into action: students getting more practice with complex text, teachers gaining clarity on what strong lesson planning looks like, and collaborative systems in place within the school and with district leadership.
"Our goals are to delve into the adaptive and technical work of leadership, and to deepen our shared knowledge of literacy," said Jamilah Sanchez, who leads early literacy work for OUSD. "For our principals, that combination is everything.They understand the complexities of reading and they get to dive into creating the change it takes to implement the best approaches."
Beyond strengthening a single leader or school, leaders across OUSD align on a consistent, grounded curriculum and approach. "We all want the kids in our schools to thrive as readers," said Cody Marshall, principal at Fruitvale Elementary. "Being here today allows us to get on the same page about our literacy initiatives."
“Our goals are to delve into the adaptive and technical work of leadership, and to deepen our shared knowledge of literacy.”
The Right Support Creates Results
Making sure leaders have the ability to carry out their school’s literacy goals, and the support from OUSD to make it real, is crucial. In one training exercise, leaders mapped their "sphere of control" around literacy, naming what they felt was within their power to change and what felt outside it, such as buy-in from teachers, how time is scheduled, or follow-through on a shared vision. "So much of what principals thought was outside their control was actually within it," said Jamilah. "We wanted them to leave saying: this is within your sphere of control, you have agency, you matter.”
With help from Eat. Learn. Play., the summer leadership institute is just one component of a year-round system of support that OUSD has been building for literacy leaders. Ongoing professional learning offerings, coaching, and end-of-year planning keep school leaders across OUSD energized to bring the best possible approaches to their students’ learning journeys.
“It's a marathon,” said Jamilah. “But we know if we keep this trajectory and stay aligned, we can reach the outcomes our students deserve."