Posted on May 10, 2024 by childrenslearninginstitute

Reach Out and Read, a national nonprofit leading the charge in promoting early childhood literacy and healthy early relationships, has announced the investment of $350,000 into communities nationwide, including $25,000 for the program in Texas.

This allocation, which comes from a donation from philanthropist MacKenzie Scott, will fund 14 local projects, allowing Reach Out and Read Affiliates to give even more children a better start to life. In FY23, Reach Out and Read served more than 4.4 million families through books and guidance about shared reading from dedicated medical clinicians.

Reach Out and Read Texas will use its $25,000 to help support pending and waitlisted clinical sites in areas with vulnerable populations. Clinics will then receive training to implement the Read Out and Read model and begin work around early literacy and healthy early relationships with Texas children and families.

“We are grateful to have this investment, supporting the work of serving more families across Texas,” said Reach Out and Read Texas Affiliate Director, Jocelyn McConnell. “Pediatric teams celebrate the opportunity to engage more families and elevate their healthy interactions.”

In 2023, Reach Out and Read Texas served 182,556 children at more than 365,000 well-child visits. An estimated 263,876 books were distributed.