United Way of Delaware is lauded for its efforts to promote literacy.
The Campaign for Grade-Level Reading recognizes United Way of Delaware with Pacesetter Honors for its work on literacy during the 2022–23 school year.
CGLR is a collaboration of investors, nonprofit partners, business leaders, government agencies, states, and communities focused on early school learning for children in low-income families.
Only 35% of children in Delaware read at grade level by the end of third grade, and in the most vulnerable communities, that number can sink to 30%.
Ken Livingston is Director of United Way of Delaware’s Get Delaware Reading - Wilmington. He says one of its programs provides free, brand-new books to young people.
"My Very Own Library, which is in about 20 schools and we have roughly close to 7000 students participating. That number may increase by 2024 as we continue to expand the program to include additional schools throughout the state of Delaware."
The Get Delaware Reading also has a Virtual Reading Angels program, which features a YouTube channel with volunteers reading a short children’s book, and its BookNook, a synchronous online learning platform for K-8 literacy skills.
Livingston grew up in Wilmington and says he understands the challenges kids there face, noting Get Delaware Reading works because it provides materials "...that can give them access to the resources, access to mentoring, access to tutoring, access to whatever it is that may have - a barrier that’s going to keep them from being successful - I want to be that person or that vehicle that can to eliminate those barriers to help those students be successful.”
