Amplifying Assets: Literacy Leadership Teams, Culturally Relevant Pedagogy, and Multiliteracies Turn

ABSTRACT Globalization and technological advances have fundamentally expanded the concept of literacy, moving it beyond traditional unimodal, page‐bound meaning‐making toward the integration of multiple communication modes. Through the combined lens of multiliteracies and culturally relevant pedagogies, this article examines literacy leadership and literacy community design as a means of translating theory into collaborative practices that drive systemic secondary literacy reform. By advocating for the formation of literacy leadership teams that strategically include instructional leaders, literacy coaches, district and building leaders, this article argues that collaborative inquiry and design are an effective approach to support diverse meaning‐making and resolve the misalignment that currently exists between students' in‐school and out‐of‐school literacy practices. Initial practical strategies that support leaders in meeting the culturally mediated literacy needs of all learners within an increasingly multimodal society are proposed in this article. Six literacy leadership actions which include assessing cultural models, investigating student identity, designing critical learning opportunities, honoring adult learners, strategically investing in assets, and reflecting on community vision are suggested. Ultimately collaborative literacy leadership, consisting of self‐reflection, collective efficacy maintenance, and multimodal professional learning design, is suggested as a path toward cultivating a school literacy community that authentically honors the dynamic literacy needs and amplifies the literacy assets of educators, students, caregivers, leaders, and community members.