COE faculty members in the Institute for the Development of Educational Achievement (IDEA) Research Center currently hold 12 active federal and state grants for literacy research totaling more than $7,011,000.

• developing and publishing research-based educational technology, media, and materials for diverse learners (NCITE; Carnine, Kame'enui, Simmons);
• developing the curriculum in assessment and instruction for the state of California's Reading/Language Arts Framework, a guide which influences the publishing standards of many states in addition to California (Simmons, Kame'enui, Carnine)
• leading the professional development of teachers who instruct early reading. The Institutes on Beginning Reading promote schoolwide beginning reading models. Schools in CA, TX, IA, AL, HI, OR, and ID implement the models and are supported during the year by the directors. (Simmons, Kame'enui, Good);
• developing the Dynamic Indicators of Basic Early Literacy Skills (DIBELS), a set of standardized, individually administered measures of early literacy development. Schools in 13 states use the DIBELS interactive website to assess progress of their students in beginning reading. (Good, Simmons, Kame'enui)
• developing materials for the Compact for Literacy Initiative for the U.S. Department of Education (Kame'enui, Simmons)
• advising the Bush administration and the Offices of Elementary and Secondary Education on education, including the new Reading First Initiative. (Carnine, Kame'enui)