Currently, 40 percent of Philadelphia’s third graders read on grade-level. This statistic foreshadows a bleak future for these children who are significantly less likely to graduate from high school and a bleak future for our city which needs an educated, strong workforce to become the world-class city it seeks to be. Years of investment in countless programs have shown little impact at the population level. However, in 2015, a coalition of funders (civic, non-profit, education, and business leaders) have come together to align resources, policies and strategies in an unprecedented bid – Read by 4th – to dramatically increase grade-level reading.

The campaign has four strategies – school-readiness, attendance, summer, and instruction – each supported by a coalition of partners who integrate family engagement, and leverage technology and public systems to advance specific objectives. As Managing Partner, the Library is positioned as a thought-leader in childhood literacy and education policy. As the physical location where programs, tools and information can be delivered, the Library highlights its natural ability to serve a significant community need. Internally, playing the coordinating role allows the library to align its family and children’s programs under a population-wide goal, resulting in a more efficient use of resources.

The campaign is working to have 6,300 more third graders reading on grade-level. It’s an audacious goal. Even if not met, simply bringing together this diverse set of partners under a shared vision, and facilitating the alignment of resources and policies, will result in a greater return on investments in the area of early childhood literacy. Ultimately, we intend to shift behavior. Families will embrace the role of first teachers, young children will be exposed to language-rich environments, kindergarteners will show-up to school ready, fewer children will be chronically absent, summer opportunities will embed literacy, and schools will implement a research-proven reading pedagogy.