Audit of teacher education programs determines 3 northwest Ohio colleges ‘not in alignment’ with Science of Reading

OHIO, USA — A statewide audit of educator preparation programs at institutions of higher learning determined that three northwest Ohio schools were not in compliance with state law regarding how future educators teach reading and literacy.

Gov. Mike DeWine and Ohio Department of Higher Educator Chancellor Mike Duffey announced the results of the recent audit on Tuesday. The schools were required to meet criteria aligned with the Science of Reading.

Bowling Green State University, Defiance College and the University of Toledo were deemed “not in alignment” at the time of the audit.

“Decades of research tells us the Science of Reading gives students of all ability levels the best chance to become strong, independent readers,” DeWine said. “Our kids only have one chance to grow up, and we have an obligation to act with urgency.”

In 2023, DeWine and state lawmakers passed legislation requiring schools, including colleges that train teachers, to align instruction with the Science of Reading. Colleges were given until Jan. 1, 2025, to comply. The law also required the Department of Higher Education to audit all educator preparation programs.

The audit was conducted by The Meadows Center for Preventing Educational Risk at the University of Texas. Reviewers examined more than 600 literacy-related course sections statewide, including syllabi, textbooks, classroom materials and observations. A key focus was identifying any use of banned teaching methods, including “three-cueing,” which is now illegal in Ohio.

BGSU received a mandatory recommendation to “revise course content to ensure alignment with evidence-based literacy instruction,” which is required to be considered in compliance. Materials containing prohibited practices were found in two courses during the audit. Aside from evidence of noncompliance, BGSU met 100% of the audit’s metrics.

Defiance College received two mandatory recommendations: to revise course content based on two courses and “address all audit metrics across the 12-Hour Reading and Literacy Core courses. Revise courses and ensure integration of all audit metrics within syllabi, course content, and assessment across courses.” Aside from the evidence of noncompliance, Defiance College addressed 99% of the audit’s metrics.

UToledo received a mandatory recommendation to revise content in two courses, which both contained the same prohibited textbook. Aside from the evidence of noncompliance, UToledo met 100% of the audit’s metrics.

State leaders say the results show progress, but also highlight gaps.

“Many colleges are excelling with their implementation of the Science of Reading. Not only will this improve their students’ job prospects, but it will also make future generations of children better readers,” DeWine said. “On the other hand, the audit found that there were still several institutions that had more work to do to become fully aligned.”

Under state law, schools now have one year from the release of the audit to become fully aligned. If they fail to meet that deadline, the chancellor is required to revoke approval of their reading and literacy programs.

Duffey said the state expected improvement, not perfection.

“We are seeing tremendous progress,” he said. “We are feeling positive about the ability of every institution to meet the standard within the time provided.”

At the 10 “not in alignment” schools, noncompliance was rated due to the inclusion of “three‑cueing approach in assigned texts, lecture materials, assessments (e.g., meaning, structure/syntax, and visual miscue analyses), or classroom observations,” according to the audit. The findings were “triangulated across data sources, and presence, even in one course section, triggered the Not In Alignment rating.”

State officials said that each of the 10 institutions initially rated “Not in Alignment” has since submitted a formal statement to the ODHE pledging that as of today, they are now in compliance. 

“This is good news. But the law also requires us to be certain that this is accurate,” DeWine said. “So we will be going back out to every one of these institutions in 2026 to verify that they have come into full alignment with the Science of Reading.”

Defiance College responded to the audit in a press release, reading, in full:

“The Ohio Department of Higher Education today issued a statement in response to a recent statewide compliance audit of teacher education programs regarding the implementation of the Science of Reading (SoR) research as mandated by House Bill 33.

The audit confirmed Defiance College’s alignment across 99% of the audit metrics, meeting 72 out of 73 criteria, but resulted in a technical finding of non-compliance. Defiance College proudly affirms its overall operational adherence to the rigorous Science of Reading requirements.  This score reflects the dedicated, mulit-year effort by our Department of Teacher Education that involves evidence-based literacy instruction, including explicit and systematic phonics, phonemic awareness, vocabulary, fluency, and comprehension.

The designation “Not in Alignment” is the result of a single, mandatory, pass-fail element within the Ohio Revised Code (OCR) related to the reporting of documentation in two literacy related courses for pre-service teachers. 

“To be clear, the non-compliance designation does not mean our pre-service teacher candidates are not appropriately trained nor that they are not prepared to implement the Science of Reading research in the State of Ohio,” said Dr. Carla Higgins, Director of Teacher Education. “It is solely based on a technical detail within the submission process. Our staff has successfully completed the required SoR audit performed by the University of Texas Meadows Center and our faculty members have been implementing the SoR research since 2023, which is why we met 99% of the audit metrics. Defiance College responded to the literacy-related course concerns immediately by:

1.  Submitting evidence to the Ohio Department of Higher Education show that our program is in full compliance with HB33 and meets all 73 of the SoR Audit Metrics; and,
2.  Continuing our internal audit process to review all compliance documentation before future review submissions.

“While we are incredibly proud of our operational success, we acknowledge that the expectation is 100% compliance,” added Dr. Higgins. “Our dedication to the Science of Reading is absolute, and we regret any confusion this technical finding may have caused our community. We have rectified the reporting error immediately and look forward to receiving full alignment status once the entire process concludes.”

A UToledo spokesperson responded to a request for comment in a statement, reading, in full:

“The University of Toledo is committed to the Science of Reading and proud to have met 100% of the required metrics through the Ohio Department of Education (ODHE).  

UToledo has already submitted a replacement for the textbook used in two graduate courses that was found out of compliance to the ODHE to complete our full alignment. We look forward to future audits of our reading curriculum.”

Full audit results:

In alignment (meets 71 out of 73 audit metrics with zero violations for banned teaching practices):

1. Ashland University
2. Baldwin Wallace University
3. Bluffton University
4. Cedarville University
5. College of Wooster
6. Franciscan University of Steubenville
7. Franklin University
8. Heidelberg University
9. Hiram College
10. John Carroll University
11. Kent State University
12. Lake Erie College
13. Lourdes University
14. Malone University
15. Marietta College
16. Miami University
17. Mount St. Joseph University
18. Mount Vernon Nazarene University
19. Muskingum University
20. Ohio Northern University
21. Otterbein University
22. Shawnee State University
23. The University of Akron
24. University of Cincinnati
25. University of Dayton
26. University of Findlay
27. University of Mount Union
28. University of Rio Grande
29. Walsh University
30. Wilmington College
31. Wittenberg University
32. Xavier University
33. Youngstown State University

Partial alignment (meets 50-70 out of 73 audit metrics with zero violations for banned teaching practices):

1. Capital University
2. God’s Bible School & College
3. Ohio Wesleyan University
4. Ursuline College
5. Western Governors University

Not in alignment (one or more violations for banned teaching practices*):

1. Bowling Green State University
2. Central State University
3. Cleveland State University
4. Defiance College
5. Ohio Christian University
6. Ohio Dominican University
7. Ohio University
8. The Ohio State University
9. The University of Toledo
10. Wright State University

*According to state officials, “each of the 10 institutions that received a rating of ‘Not in Alignment’ at the time of the audit have since submitted a formal attestation to ODHE pledging that – as of today – they are now in compliance with the law.”

The individual reports for each college are available on the Ohio Department of Higher Education’s website at this link.