The Delaware Department of Education (DDOE) has been awarded $8.7 million through the U.S. Department of Education’s Education Innovation and Research (EIR) program, a competitive federal initiative that funds evidence-based solutions to persistent educational challenges. This award is part of a $256 million national investment supporting 24 new EIR projects in Fiscal Year 2025, including 10 grants to state education agencies—the largest number of state-led awards in the program’s history—underscoring the growing role of states in advancing research, innovation, and scalable impact in education.
Delaware’s project, titled Literacy for We the People, focuses on evidence-based literacy instruction integrated with civics and history, targeting practices that improve outcomes for high-need students. The DDOE will coordinate nationally with the Center for Civic Education in Washington, D.C., while continuing collaboration with local partners such as the University of Delaware’s Center for Civics Education.
Secretary of Education Cindy Marten highlighted the importance of the initiative, emphasizing that combining literacy with civics and history helps students build confidence, curiosity, and critical thinking. The grant aims to support students who require the most assistance while expanding evidence-based practices across the state.
Through this funding, Delaware will strengthen educators’ capacity to deliver structured, evidence-based literacy instruction integrated with civics and history for grades 4–8. The project is designed to increase student achievement in English language arts and history/social studies while fostering civic knowledge, skills, and dispositions. It will also scale Science of Reading-aligned practices already established in Delaware’s Early Literacy Leadership Academy (ELLA) and Secondary Literacy Leadership Academy (SeLLA).
Additionally, the project seeks to expand integrated literacy approaches across social studies and other content areas for grades 6–12, aligning with Delaware’s literacy standards. Beyond supporting local students and educators, the initiative will contribute to the national evidence base on effective methods for combining literacy and civics instruction, offering insights that can be applied in other states and contexts.
