United Way of Central Ohio and Success by Third Grade hosted a roundtable discussion on Monday, Sept. 23 at the Community Impact Center to shed light on the critical issue of youth literacy.

A number of local state representatives from the Ohio House of Representatives and Ohio Senate, along with legislative aides, were in attendance to discuss literacy rates in Franklin County and the impact low literacy rates have on our children, our workforce and our communities.

Led by Lisa S. Courtice, United Way’s President & CEO, and Cheryl Wyatt, Vice President of Success by Third Grade, the discussion focused on barriers to reading proficiency and the long-term consequences of low literacy rates. Participants also discussed solutions for improving literacy rates, including collaboration between nonprofits and government entities and officials, as well as policies and funding that could address the issue.

Learn more about the Success by Third Grade movement and how United Way works to improve reading proficiency by identifying and tackling nonacademic barriers. Our vision is to mobilize the caring power of our community to put every child in Franklin County on a pathway to success by the time they leave third grade.