Reading Partners lends a helping hand to students struggling to read at current grade levels

Originally posted on ABC News 4

CHARLESTON COUNTY, S.C. (WCIV) — As 22% of Charleston’s third-grade students struggle to read at their current grade level, Reading Partners is working to make a difference.

“This is not just a statistic; it represents the lives and futures of children in our community,” said Dawn Kahley, Reading Partners’ development director. “It is a call to action, a call for change, and a call for empowerment.”

Reading Partners tutors and students get paired for a year. During that time, they work together for around two hours a week to practice reading and comprehension. During the 2022 to 2023 school year, 528 Charleston area students received in-person or virtual tutoring. Of those students, 87% saw improvement in their year-end literacy growth, according to a press release.

Reading Partners said that often factoring into a child’s literacy struggles are socioeconomic class and race.

“The literacy crisis disproportionately impacts children in poverty, which creates barriers for children from a young age,” said Emily Swanson, board chairwoman of Reading Partners South Carolina. “Reading Partners proactively addresses this with an amazing curriculum and one-on-one tutoring. This personalized attention helps to nurture children’s literacy skills, imagination, and confidence. These are lifelong lessons that they will carry with them into the future.”

The Reader Partners program is in 11 schools across Charleston and Berkeley counties.

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