Today is #NationalReadABookDay – and did you know that students who don’t read proficiently by third grade are 4x more likely to dropout of high school? While you may think childhood illiteracy is a far-off issue that doesn’t really apply to you, it’s happening right here in the Midlands.

Just this year, 600+ third-grade students in Lexington + Richland counties failed a school reading test that requires passing to enter the next grade. Now, many of those kids are being held back.

How can you help? By becoming a tutor for a local child (grades K-2nd) in a local school. And it’s actually not as time-intensive as you may think. United Way of the Midlands’ Midlands Reading Consortium makes it easy.

📍 Volunteers get to pick which of the 21 participating Midlands schools they want to go to

⏱ Reading sessions only take 30 minutes a day – so you can leave + come back to work over your lunch break

✅ There’s a waiting list of children who need help reading, so there’s always a place for you

🤝 United Way is getting tutors trained + placed now, so it’s a great time to join (and to fulfill your volunteer hour commitments before the year is up)

Since Midlands Reading Consortium started in 2007, 3,025 students have received one-on-one tutoring with volunteers, and 90% of those kids increased their reading skills + interest, thanks to their tutors. Watch this video to see some MRC tutor/child success stories.

It only takes 30 minutes a week to make the difference between whether a child advances to the next grade + graduates from high school on time – or not.

To volunteer, click here + choose the school you want to work with. Your new reading buddy with thank you.

This content was created in partnership with United Way of the Midlands.