The State Board of Education (SBOE) Thursday approved emergency rules and proposed rules for Alabama’s first-ever paid parental leave benefit for public sector employees, the newly enacted the Alabama Public Employee Paid Parental Leave Act of 2025. State Superintendent of Education Eric Mackey announced the state's improved third grade reading scores as well as high school graduation and college and career readiness rates.

Reading Scores Show Continued Growth 

The Alabama Comprehensive Assessment of Progress (ACAP) summative reading test results show 88.4% of third graders are reading at or above grade level for the 2025-2025 school year, with 11.6% (approximately 6,470 students) below grade level requiring additional support before advancing to fourth grade. 

This represents improvement from last year when 13.7% would have been below grade level under this year’s increased cut score, which the SBOE raised from 435 to 444 last year. 

Two school systems – Orange Beach and Satsuma City Schools – achieved 100% of students reading at or above grade level. 

View the 2024-2025 ACAP Reading Scores by school system and individual school.

Graduation Rates Return to Pre-Pandemic Levels 

Alabama’s high school graduation rate reached 91.6%, tying its highest rate from 2019 and showing a return to pre-pandemic levels. This 1.52% increase over last year’s 90% graduation rate equates to several hundred more students, Mackey said. 

The state’s College and Career Readiness (CCR) rates grew 3.7% to 87.8% statewide. CCR is determined based on the percentage of students enrolled in the four-year cohort who met at least one of the CCR indicators: ACT subtest benchmark score; ACT WorkKeys silver or higher level; Advanced Placement (AP) qualifying score; International Baccalaureate qualifying score; approved college/postsecondary credit; approved industry credential; military enlistment; career technical education completer; or in-school youth apprenticeship program.

Beginning with the class of 2026, completion of at least one CCR indicator (CCRI) will become a graduation requirement.

Paid Parental Leave Implementation

A top priority of Gov. Kay Ivey, the Alabama Public Employee Paid Parental Leave Act of 2025 includes a new $15.6 line item in the FY26 Education Trust Fund (ETF) budget to reimburse local boards for substitute teacher costs at $120 per day. The law takes effect July 1, and eligibility requires 12 months of prior employment.

The Alabama State Department of Education (ALSDE) will issue guidance, forms and financial codes in an official memo to school systems June 23. 

RAISE Act: Student Weighted Funding Formula

Mackey reviewed a June 11 ALSDE memo detailing each school system’s allocation under the new student-weighted funding formula created through the Renewing Alabama’s Investment in Student Excellence (RAISE) Act. 

Beginning with the 2025-26 school year, public K-12 systems will receive additional funding to address educational needs and improve outcomes for certain student populations. While systems have some flexibility, the memo notes state superintendent approval is required to move more than 10% of allocated funds between categories. 

Pursuant to the RAISE Act, ALSDE is responsible for several components of the law. The ALSDE was required by June 1 to hire an external partner to support a comprehensive audit identifying unnecessary or burdensome state laws, regulations, reporting requirements and processes applying to public schools. The name of the external partner has not yet been made available.

By July 1, the ALSDE must publish a RAISE Act guide outlining administrative procedures, data requirements and submission deadlines for each LEA.

View the SDE Memo: RAISE Act Preliminary Guidance and FY2026 Allocations.

Legislative Updates

The board received updates on several new laws taking effect over the summer or during the 2025-2026 school year:

• FOCUS Act (Cell Phone Ban) – The Freeing Our Classrooms of Unnecessary Screens for Safety (FOCUS) Act prohibits student use, operation and possession of personal wireless communication devices in public K-12 schools during the instructional day beginning with the 2025-2026 school year. Local boards of education must adopt both wireless communication device and internet safety policies. AASB distributed sample board policies and accompanying FAQs June 2. View the FOCUS Act FAQs.
• CHOOSE Act – While passed in 2024, a law enacted this 2025 legislative session changes both the funding amount and mechanism for the annual allocation of education revenues to the education savings account (ESA) private school voucher program. Instead of the legislature annually appropriating a minimum of $100 million to the program from the ETF, up to $150 million each year will come directly from gross income tax receipts. Mackey positioned this change as an improvement. These are the same tax revenues, however, that fund public K-12 education. The legislature is, of course, authorized to appropriate any amount of additional funding to the CHOOSE Act through the annual legislative appropriations process. This new law in no way limits the amount of public education revenue that will be diverted away from the ETF – it just changes the mechanism by which these funds are allocated.
• Alabama Teacher Paperwork Streamlining Act - Beginning with the 2026-27 school year, this new law requires the ALSDE, working with local school boards, to develop a unified digital platform and data sharing system to consolidate and streamline documentation requirements for the Alabama Literacy and Numeracy Acts. It also creates the “Alabama Public Education Paperwork Reduction Committee” made up of classroom teachers and school system administrators to make recommendations to the ALSDE about ways to streamline paperwork. Mackey noted that as most required documentation is federal, not state, so there may not be much paperwork that can be reduced but there may be opportunities to digitize existing forms.
• Move on When Ready and REACH Act – These two new laws codify existing local programs already in place across Alabama between LEAs and local community colleges and higher education institutions. The Move On When Ready Act allows high school juniors and seniors to complete all their required coursework at the college level and still graduate with their high school diploma. These students will not be allowed to complete any classes or participate in any activities at the high school level while completing their courses. For reference, just four students have utilized this option in the last two years. The Restoring Education Advancement of Completing High School (REACH) Act codifies an existing nontraditional high school diploma option for students who dropout/withdraw from high school and instead complete their graduation requirements through the Alabama Community College System (ACCS) Adult Education Program. In the past three years, 39 students have completed this program.

America 250 Initiatives 

• Alabama Semiquincentennial Schools launched in May with a major push beginning this fall. Two Alabama students won first place in the nationwide "America's Field Trip" competition. Alabama Public Television is launching several related initiatives, including statewide workshops and curriculum development for grades 6-10 focused on the American Revolution and civics. 

Digital Literacy and Computer Science Course of Study (DLCS) Update 

The board received the updated DLCS course of study, which now includes artificial intelligence (AI) and cybersecurity. The revised standards also emphasize social media and internet safety, aligning with the newly enacted FOCUS Act.

Educator Preparation Programs (EPPs)

Oakwood University, the University of South Alabama, and Miles College each presented their educator preparation programs (EPP) during the board's work session. Mackey noted all Alabama EPPs now are officially accredited by the Council for the Accreditation of Educator Preparation (CAEP).

Next SBOE Meeting and Work Session

The board’s next regular meeting will take place Tuesday, July 8, 2025, at 10 a.m. in Montgomery with a work session immediately following:

• Gordon Persons Building Auditorium
• Livestream viewing: https://www.youtube.com/user/aldeptofed/live 
• Archived meeting and work session recordings: https://www.alabamaachieves.org/state-board-of-education/meeting-videos/ 

Ada Katherine van Wyhe, MPA
AASB Director of Governmental Relations