A new movement is aiming to improve reading skills and book access for children in rural Kentucky communities as part of broader efforts to address literacy gaps in the commonwealth.

The initiative, highlighted on International Literacy Day on Sept. 8, includes Save the Children's Learn Without Limits program, which aims to ensure every child reads at grade level by third grade. According to Public News Service, Alissa Taylor, senior managing director of program implementation for Save the Children based in Berea, noted that rural libraries often face significant challenges in providing adequate book access.

"Libraries are smaller. There's less access to books there and the renewal of current books that children may be interested in or want to read doesn't happen as often just because of lack of resources and lack of funding," Taylor said.

The urgency of the literacy push is underscored by Kentucky's reading challenges. Earlier reporting noted that fewer than half of third-graders were reading on grade level, prompting lawmakers to pass the "Read to Succeed" Act. Research shows that children not reading proficiently by third grade fail to graduate high school on time at four times the rate of their proficient peers.

Save the Children offers several recommendations for parents and caregivers, including spending 10 minutes daily reading to children, gifting books, supporting local teachers, and ensuring children have access to nutritious food and other health essentials. Taylor emphasized that early literacy is among the strongest predictors of future academic success.

Mary McInerney, national head of program implementation for Save the Children, described how reading difficulties cascade through a student's educational experience. "Grade-level materials have become frustrating, overwhelming. Children become disengaged. Confidence goes down. Children just see themselves as a failure," McInerney said.

According to Save the Children data, elementary and middle school students in rural America read approximately half a grade level behind their non-rural peers. Taylor, who grew up in rural Kentucky and later attended Eastern Kentucky University, shared her own experience. "I was behind when I went to EKU as a college student," she recounted.