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A high school English teacher in Bow, New Hampshire, Meagan Burd completed the 91��Ƭ�� College of Professional Studies’ online Reading and Writing Specialist (RWS) program this past fall. Shortly thereafter, she was named the 2026 recipient of the Christa McAuliffe Sabbatical Award, a prestigious honor from the for educators. The award recognizes exemplary teachers with bold ideas, ideas that can improve learning well beyond a single classroom.  

Meagan’s sabbatical project focuses on one of today’s most pressing instructional challenges, helping secondary teachers integrate effective, structured literacy practices across all subject areas. She traces this work to her experience in the RWS program and to the mentorship of faculty member Chris Tate, whose expertise in PK–12 literacy instruction helped shape Meagan’s thinking about content-area literacy, professional learning, and teacher leadership.   

Can you describe your current role and what you see every day when it comes to students’ reading and writing at the high school level?  

I am a high school English teacher at Bow High School and have been teaching for thirteen years now. In my classroom, I see motivated and capable students who want to succeed, but whose reading and writing skills sometimes limit their ability to fully engage with rigorous content. This often shows up as difficulties with complex texts or expressing their thinking clearly in writing. In our heterogeneously grouped classes, the range of ability is significant, with some students reading well above grade level and others below. All students are expected to meet the same high standards, so these differences can create challenges with accessing the curriculum. 

 What initially motivated you to enroll in the Reading Writing Specialist program? 

In 2023, I was teaching on an integrated ninth-grade Humanities team that combines English and Social Studies. After one of our meetings, one of my colleagues said, “Our students can’t read, and I don’t know how to teach reading.” I wanted so badly to give answers, but I didn’t know either.  In that moment, we had a shared sense of frustration and urgency. Although the pandemic had passed, we were seeing literacy gaps widen rather than close, and it became clear that we needed to respond differently. I was motivated to better support our students, so I reached out to Dr. Elizabeth Cannon, founder of Literacy Leaders NH. She recommended the LETRS: Science of Reading training and the RWS program at 91��Ƭ�� as potential pathways to strengthen literacy instruction at both the classroom and school level. 

About the Christa McAuliffe Sabbatical  

What was your reaction when you learned you had been awarded the Christa McAuliffe Sabbatical?  

I felt incredibly proud—not just of myself, but of my school community and the leaders in our state who are prioritizing students’ needs. Receiving the Christa McAuliffe Sabbatical was never about personal recognition; to me, it represents an opportunity to raise awareness about the literacy needs of our students and the commitment of teachers who are working hard to support them. I’m honored to carry out my project, as it validates not only the work I’ve done but also the efforts of so many secondary educators who are continually seeking ways to better serve their students. 

The sabbatical honors educators with innovative ideas. What problem were you hoping to address through your proposal?  

My proposal addresses a gap between student needs and teacher support at the secondary level. While we have increasingly recognized the literacy and learning gaps among our students, teachers who are motivated to help often have limited access to relevant professional development. Most available training is designed for elementary educators or interventionists, as reflected in my own experience. My project seeks to bridge that gap by synthesizing current research in the science of reading and adolescent literacy into practical, accessible professional development. The goal is to better equip secondary teachers to integrate effective literacy routines into their classrooms so they can more confidently support all learners. 

Literacy Across the Content Areas  

Your sabbatical project focuses on content-area literacy. Why is this work especially urgent at the secondary level?  

Content-area literacy is especially urgent at the secondary level because high schools face structural and instructional challenges that can limit targeted literacy support, including scheduling constraints and graduation pathways. As a result, many students do not receive consistent, meaningful opportunities to develop their reading and writing skills. Research shows that students are more likely to build and retain literacy skills when those skills are embedded within content-area classes, where they spend the majority of their time. For literacy skills to transfer, students need repeated practice across disciplines and contexts. By integrating literacy instruction into content-area classrooms, we can provide more equitable and sustained support, ensuring that all students have the opportunity to strengthen the skills they need for academic success. 

What are some barriers that prevent high school teachers from addressing literacy in their content, and how does your project aim to help? 

There are several barriers that make it challenging for high school teachers to integrate literacy into their content areas. One is the limited access to professional development specifically designed for secondary educators. Another is time—teachers face significant curricular pressures, and adding new skills or standards can feel overwhelming. My project aims to address these challenges by providing professional development that is short, focused, and practical. I want to show that literacy routines can be efficiently embedded into existing instruction without adding to teachers’ workload. I also plan to offer flexible resources,  potentially with coaching for implementation, so teachers feel more confident and supported as they make instructional shifts. 

 How does structured literacy look different when applied outside of an English classroom?  

Literacy instruction doesn’t look drastically different outside of an English classroom—and that’s really the point! Supporting literacy is a shared responsibility across content areas because these skills apply to all learning. The core instructional practices are transferable, which helps students apply their skills across disciplines. The main difference is in the types of texts students encounter and the purposes for reading and writing in those contexts. In English, students read literature; in social studies, primary sources and newspaper articles; in science, lab reports and studies; and in math, word problems and proofs. The common denominator is reading. When we strengthen students’ reading skills, we make all of these texts more accessible, allowing students to engage more fully in every subject area. 

Connection to the RWS Program  

How did the RWS program shape your understanding of literacy instruction across disciplines?  

Through the coursework and clinical experience required by the RWS program, I learned how reading and writing demands vary across disciplines, but rely on many of the same underlying skills. Skills such as vocabulary development, comprehension strategies, and writing with clarity are transferable and applicable in all subject areas. The program also showed me how intentional literacy instruction can be embedded into content-area teaching without taking away from disciplinary goals. I now have a better understanding of how I can support colleagues in making those connections for students. 

In what ways did coursework from the program directly inform your sabbatical project design?  

When I proposed my Christa McAuliffe Sabbatical project, I saw it as a culminating extension of my work in the RWS program. All of my coursework directly informed the design of the project and helped shape its focus and goals. Through the program, I developed leadership skills, gained practical strategies for supporting students’ reading development, and deepened my understanding of the RWS role through both coursework and the required clinical experience. Most importantly, it reinforced my goal of sharing this knowledge with colleagues and raising awareness of the literacy needs of secondary students. The sabbatical provides a meaningful opportunity to bring that work into practice at a broader level. 

Leadership and Professional Growth  

As part of the RWS program, you helped start a literacy team at your school. What inspired that work, and what impact has it had?  

At first, I created the team to fulfill an assignment for the program. We had some autonomy within the assignment as far as who would be on the team, the number of people on the team, and the needs that the team would address. I wanted our literacy team to be genuine and authentically meet the needs that we saw for our school, so when I met with our school administration to brainstorm our approach, they suggested establishing an interdisciplinary team. It was more popular than I anticipated, and we have had continued participation from teachers in every department, including school counselors, paraprofessionals, and special educators. This validated that it is a shared concern amongst the faculty, and we could work together to address it. We’ve worked toward a number of goals already and have discussed ways to overcome the challenges we are facing with our students regarding literacy instruction. The conversations extend beyond our literacy team, showing that it is an initiative that is working from the ground up!  

How has your confidence as a literacy leader changed since completing the program?  

When I entered the education program at 91��Ƭ�� over 15 years ago, I was introduced to the concept of teachers as “agents of change.” Throughout my career, I applied that phrase to my classroom in consideration that our students are the future generations that will have an impact on our society. Being an “agent of change” means something completely different to me after completing the RWS program. I have gained valuable experiences and skills that help me see how thoughtful and strategic collaboration can make changes that extend beyond my own classroom. I’ve never seen myself as a leader before and after the experiences I’ve had in the RWS program, I now see how I can still be my authentic self and lead others. I try to do so by recognizing the strengths that we all have and can share.  

Faculty Mentorship  

You have credited Chris Tate as a major influence on your development. What made her classes and mentorship so impactful?   

Throughout the program, I felt a renewed sense of empathy for my students. Learning new things can be challenging and uncomfortable. Applying that knowledge can feel even more so. Chris put me in situations that required me to step out of my comfort zone, like presenting professional development to our faculty, teaching new skills to students for observations, and developing the literacy team. Though the experiences felt risky to me, she offered continued support, constructive feedback, and encouragement. Everything we learned and practiced was current and relevant to teaching practice today. All of that led to incredible growth that I didn’t always recognize throughout, but I can see it now as I reflect back.  

Why do you think strong faculty mentorship matters so much in graduate educator preparation programs?  

Strong faculty mentorship is extremely important in educator preparation programs. I am grateful to have had Chris at 91��Ƭ�� and Dr. Loralyn LaBombard in our district as my mentors. Teaching is one of the most challenging professions, and there is often little supervision or coaching once teachers enter the classroom. Mentorship helps bridge the gap between theory and practice. Teachers can learn all the theory in the world, but experience in the classroom and with clinical experiences feels completely different than what we learn in the books, because we are working with humans and classroom dynamics that are evolving and changing.  Mentorship helps to support teachers in transitioning from gaining knowledge to applying it.  

Looking Ahead  

What outcomes do you hope your sabbatical work will produce for teachers and students?  

The ultimate outcome would be a shared belief amongst educators that our high school students can read, and we can support them with their literacy skills in the classroom. Other intended outcomes include bridging theory and practice, creating practical resources for secondary educators, providing ongoing support to help teachers make instructional shifts, and progressing toward closing the literacy gap for our students.  

What would you say to educators considering graduate study to deepen their impact?   

I would tell them that they will gain so much more knowledge and experience than they anticipated. I didn’t know what I didn’t know, so to speak. This program enlightened me to so much information and a passion that I hadn’t originally recognized. The range of experiences within the program allowed me to deepen my understanding in areas that I’ve been interested in, but also exposed me to other topics, information, and experiences that I didn’t even have an awareness of before. I would advise educators not to hesitate if it is something they are considering. I have a busy life raising three children and teaching full-time- the support of the University helped me achieve my goals within my busy lifestyle. 

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