06/10/2026
Hello OPM community! In case you were not aware, the Okemos Board of Education has made the decision to cut our instuctional coach positions. Below is some information for those that are not aware of the importance of this role at our school. Please read this information and express your concerns to the board to [email protected], and/or attend the June 22nd board meeting where they will make their final vote. Parent support is needed now more than ever!
Why Instructional Coaches Matter:
Instructional Coaches are a key part of the Multi-Tiered System of Supports (MTSS) in Okemos Public Schools. They support approximately 1,700 students and 150 teachers daily by strengthening classroom instruction, coordinating academic interventions, analyzing student data, and ensuring students receive the support or enrichment they need to succeed.
Their work spans all levels of student support:
Tier 1 (All Students): Coaches help teachers improve instruction, analyze assessment data, plan lessons, differentiate learning, and support both struggling and advanced learners.
Tier 2 (Targeted Support): They identify students needing extra help or enrichment, coordinate reading and math interventions, supervise intervention staff, monitor student progress, and ensure state-mandated reading plans are implemented.
Tier 3 (Intensive Support): They coordinate individualized interventions, work with multidisciplinary teams, support gifted students, and help align classroom instruction with specialized services.
Systems Leadership: They lead school improvement efforts, facilitate collaboration among staff, provide professional learning, ensure interventions are effective, and help schools meet state and federal requirements.
The role is becoming even more important as schools prepare for new math and reading curriculum adoptions, Michigan dyslexia legislation requirements, and literacy coaching expectations tied to state funding.
How Cutting These Positions Would Hurt Schools
Eliminating Instructional Coaches would have significant consequences for students, teachers, and schools:
1. Reduced Support for Teachers
Teachers would lose a dedicated instructional partner who helps them:
Analyze student data
Improve teaching practices
Differentiate instruction
Implement new curriculum and instructional strategies
Without coaching support, teachers would have less time and guidance to address diverse student needs, particularly as educational requirements become more complex.
2. Weaker Academic Interventions
Instructional Coaches coordinate intervention systems that support more than 250 students daily.
Without them:
Students may be identified later for needed support.
Interventions could become less consistent and less effective.
Progress monitoring may suffer.
Students who are struggling could fall further behind before receiving help.
3. Increased Risk of Falling Out of Compliance
Michigan's new literacy and dyslexia laws require schools to:
Conduct regular literacy screenings.
Identify students with characteristics of dyslexia.
Develop and monitor Individual Reading Improvement Plans (IRIPs).
Implement evidence-based interventions.
Instructional Coaches currently help manage these responsibilities. Removing them could make compliance more difficult and place additional burdens on administrators and teachers.
4. Less Support for Advanced Learners
The role is not only focused on struggling students. Coaches also:
Identify students ready for enrichment.
Help teachers provide advanced instruction.
Coordinate support for gifted learners.
Without coaches, high-achieving students may receive fewer opportunities for challenge and growth.
5. Greater Burden on Principals and Teachers
Many of the responsibilities currently handled by coaches would not disappear. Instead, they would likely shift to:
Principals
Classroom teachers
Intervention aides
Other support staff
This could reduce the time those staff members have for their primary responsibilities and lead to less effective implementation of MTSS systems.
6. Loss of Schoolwide Coordination
Instructional Coaches serve as the hub connecting teachers, intervention staff, administrators, and specialists.
Without that coordination:
Data meetings will occur less frequently.
Intervention systems will become inconsistent across classrooms.
School improvement efforts will lose momentum.
Decisions will be less data-driven and less responsive to student needs.
Bottom Line:
Instructional Coaches are not an "extra" service; they are the people who help ensure that instructional systems function effectively. Eliminating these positions would likely result in less support for teachers, weaker intervention systems, reduced services for both struggling and advanced learners, increased compliance challenges, and greater strain on existing staff. Ultimately, it could make it harder for schools to deliver timely, high-quality instruction and support to every student.
