The Campaign for Grade-Level Reading
September 2014
The Campaign for Grade-Level Reading is a collaborative effort by funders, nonprofits, government agencies, business leaders, states and communities across the nation to ensure that many more children from low-income families succeed in school and graduate prepared for college, a career and active citizenship.
Fall Events Convene Funders, Partners and Community Members
GLR Campaign leaders will be moving across the country this fall to meet with funders and engaged community leaders. We hope to see you there:
- Oct. 14: Funders-only Huddle at the Grantmakers for Children, Youth and Families Annual Conference in Detroit, Michigan
- Oct. 15: Community Members Meeting in Roanoke, Virginia, for community members from Virginia, North Carolina and South Carolina
- Oct. 19: Funders-only Huddle at the Council on Foundations Fall Conference for Community Foundations in Cleveland, Ohio
- Oct. 22: Funders-only reception at the Grantmakers for Education Annual Conference in Miami, Florida
- Oct. 29: New York State Community Meeting in New York City for all community members across the state
- Oct. 29: Arkansas Community Meeting in Little Rock
- Oct. 30: Workshop at Exponent Philanthropy National Conference in Washington, D.C.
- Nov. 6: Florida Community Meeting in Delray Beach
- Nov. 12-14: Funders-only Huddle at the Annual Meeting of the Southeastern Council of Foundations in New Orleans
- Nov. 19: Texas Community Meeting in San Antonio
For information on funders events, contact Amy Battjer (abattjer@gradelevelreading.net). For regional meetings, contact Bob Saffold with the Network Communities Support Center (bob.saffold@gmail.com).
Five Chief State School Officers Commit to Reducing Chronic Absence
State school chiefs from California, Maryland, New Mexico, Rhode Island and Utah pledged in September to work with the GLR Campaign to promote solutions that can improve attendance. Three chiefs — California Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Torlakson, Rhode Island Education Commissioner Deborah Gist and Utah Interim Superintendent Joel Coleman — held events to recognize Attendance Awareness Month.
The chiefs co-chair the Advisory Committee on Eliminating Chronic Absence, a panel established by the Campaign to address the profound impact chronic absence has on a child’s ability to read proficiently by the end of third grade. Read more here.
Community Self-Assessment Tool Ready for Community Input
Are you wondering how the GLR Campaign’s new Community Self- Assessment Tool can help you move forward with your third-grade reading goals? In a series of short videos, community leaders describe the progress they have made and how the assessment will help them track that progress and refresh their plans of action. We’re asking communities to fill out the on-line self-assessment by December 1, so we can use the information as we consider our Pacesetter Awards. The awards this year will be based on participation in mobilization events, progress on at least one indicator and evidence of an updated plan.
Attendance Awareness Month Spurs Action
GLR communities and state leaders used Attendance Awareness Month in September not only to promote the value of good attendance but also to deepen their work on reducing chronic absence. More than 70 communities posted activities to our Attendance Action Map, and more than 30 were featured in news stories. Among the highlights:
- San Antonio, Texas, announced a 35.4 percent increase in attendance in the SA Kids Attend to Win initiative sponsored by the P16Plus Council of Greater Bexar County.
- Arkansas launched a radio PSA campaign with endorsements by popular DJs and a message from Winthrop Rockefeller Foundation President and CEO Sherece West-Scantlebury.
- Delray Beach, Florida’s coalition met with school leaders, who agreed to make attendance a top priority this year.
- In Quad Cities, Iowa, the players on the Quad City Mallards ice hockey team have committed to volunteer at local elementary schools once a month and focus on encouraging students to increase their school attendance and read on grade level by third grade.
Read for the Record Day
On Tuesday, October 21, educators, mayors and community members across the country will stop what they are doing to read a children’s book for national “Read for the Record Day.” The event, launched by Jumpstart, aims to promote solutions to ensure that every student arrives at kindergarten ready to succeed.
Last year, the campaign set a world record for the largest shared reading experience, with more than 2 million people reading Otis by Loren Long all on the same day. This year, the assigned reading material is Bunny Cakes by author Rosemary Wells.
To learn more and pledge your participation, visit http://www.jstart.org/campaigns/event-resources1.
Rochester Mayor Unveils Third-Grade Reading Plan
In New York, Rochester Mayor Lovely Warren announced a plan to get all children in the region reading at grade level by the end of third grade. The “3 to 3 Initiative” focuses on children from age 3 to third grade and is based on recommendations from the City’s Early Learning Council. The Council’s recommendations include: funding programming gaps before and after pre-K; advocating for additional educational resources; building public trust; and empowering parents. Learn more about the initiative here.
September’s Bright Spots Communities Promote Attendance, Healthy Readers
Our Bright Spots Communities this month include attendance and summer learning efforts as well as two unique initiatives that aim to identify struggling readers early on and provide support:
- Phoenix, Arizona. The Phoenix Public Library and the Arizona Literacy & Learning Center partnered to provide free reading screenings for kindergarten through third-grade students.
- Los Angeles, California. Vision To Learn provides elementary school children in the area with free eye exams and glasses, helping those who have difficulty seeing become better readers.
- Sacramento, California, launched a chronic absence effort that aims to shift the conversation on attendance. The school system, Sacramento City Unified School District, is now testing new strategies to reduce chronic absence.
- Richland County, South Carolina. The Richland Library is hosting programs during the summer and throughout the school year that support early learning, family literacy and grade-level reading.
Bill to Improve Child Care for Low-Income Families Moves Through Congress
The House passed legislation this month to provide financial assistance in the form of vouchers to low-income families in need of child care. The bill, which reauthorizes a block grant program approved in 1996, also would require background checks for child care center staff, higher-quality health and safety regulations and more information for parents about their child care options. The legislation is expected to be approved by the Senate and signed into law by the end of the year.
NSLA and ULC Partner on Summer Learning Initiative for Libraries
The National Summer Learning Association (NSLA) and the Urban Libraries Council (ULC) announced this month that they will work together to lead a 15-month initiative designed to identify and share effective models of public libraries as leaders in summer learning. “Accelerate Summer: A Partnership for Learning” aims to raise national awareness of the importance of public libraries in education, particularly during the summer months. The initiative is made possible in part by a 2014 National Leadership Grant from the federal Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS).
NGA Launches Grade-Level Reading Initiative
The National Governors Association Center for Best Practices has launched a five-month project to collaborate with states to help them develop or refine their policy strategy for raising third-grade reading proficiency. This project is based on a policy framework that NGA released in the fall of 2013, A Governor’s Guide to Early Literacy: Getting all Students Reading by Third Grade, and a tool for self-assessment and identifying policy priorities that was developed subsequently. With those products, NGA staff will work with state teams from Colorado, Delaware, Mississippi, New Jersey, North Carolina and Oregon to accomplish one or more of the following goals:
- Complete a policy audit and determine priorities using the NGA framework and policy tool, which will inform the state’s strategy for raising third-grade reading proficiency;
- Develop or refine legislative and regulatory proposals for the 2014-2015 school year or the 2015 legislative session;
- Develop or enhance existing reading proficiency laws or strategic plans.
Nearly 60 GLR Communities Receive Dollar General Grants
The Dollar General Literacy Foundation this month announced nearly $4 million in grants to schools and nonprofit organizations across the country in support of grade-level reading. The funds aim to help recipients implement new or expand existing literacy programs and purchase books, technology and additional literacy materials. Nearly 60 GLR communities were represented among the 825 schools and nonprofit organizations that received grants. A complete list of the recipients can be found here. Grant applications for adult, family, summer and youth literacy programs will be available in January 2015.
Silicon Valley Community Foundation Wins $7.5M for Grade-Level Reading
The Silicon Valley Community Foundation has received a three-year, $7.5 million federal Social Investment Fund grant to improve reading proficiency among young children in San Mateo County, part of an ambitious countywide effort known as The Big Lift.
Alarmed that 42 percent of the county’s third graders are not reading on grade level, the foundation joined with San Mateo County, the County Board of Education and a range of nonprofit and philanthropic partners to bolster learning from preschool through third grade. In particular, the initiative seeks to reduce chronic absence and summer learning loss while it engages parents and community partners.
Early Head Start Grants Available
The Administration for Children and Families (ACF) is offering more than $14 million in funding for American Indian/Alaska Native Early Head Start expansion and Early Head Start-Child Care partnerships. ACF also recently announced more than $22 million to be competitively awarded for Early Head Start expansion and migrant and seasonal Early Head Start-Child Care partnerships. The grants aim to expand access to high-quality, comprehensive services to infants and toddlers from low-income families. The deadline to apply for either grant is October 6, 2014. Click here for more information.
Absences Add Up: How School Attendance Influences Student Success
This state-by-state analysis of national testing data demonstrates that students who miss more school than their peers consistently score lower on standardized tests, a result that holds true at every age, in every demographic group and in every state and city tested. “Absences Add Up: How School Attendance Influences Student Success” compares attendance rates and NAEP scores for every state and for 21 large urban areas.