Invest in Oregon’s Future: Fully Fund Early Literacy at $300 Million

Right now, in classrooms across Oregon, children are brimming with potential. They are eager to learn, curious about the world, and ready to thrive.

But last year only 40% met the third grade literacy benchmark, which means 60% or over 25,500 children did not. And the racial disparities are especially alarming: just 22% of Black/African American students, 25% of Hispanic/Latino students, 20% of Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander, 24% of American Indian/Alaska Native and a mere 6% of English learners meet the vital third grade literacy milestone.

Furthermore, Oregon remains one of the few states where students have yet to show a post pandemic rebound.

DISTRICTS ACROSS THE STATE RECEIVED PARTIAL FUNDING IN 2023

In 2023, lawmakers made a critical first step with the Early Literacy Success Initiative, investing $90 million in school grants to help students build the foundation for a lifetime of learning through these four research-aligned strategies:

Job-embedded coaching for educators
High-dosage tutoring for children
Summer learning for children
Research-aligned curriculum, assessments, and culturally relevant books and materials

That investment is already transforming lives; to give every child in Oregon a real shot at success, we need to fully invest $300 million in the Early Literacy Success Initiative School Grants in order to reach all of Oregon’s 240,000 kindergarten through third graders.

The state’s initial investment of $90 million brought new energy and possibility to our schools. Since implementation:

Job-embedded Coaching

“Instructional coaching has often been grant-funded or temporary funding. And so you get this magical thing happening, and then when the funding goes away, it can feel like the bottom’s dropping. So having the early literacy funds allowed us to maintain these really critical lifelines.” Educator, McMinnville School District

Summer Learning

“The Early Literacy Grant has allowed us to offer a variety of different programming. So this summer, we’ve got virtual tutoring. We’ve got summer school. It’s not just one thing that we’re doing; it’s multiple access points.” Educator, Oregon City School District

High Dosage Tutoring

“Our students do one-on-one tutoring in the summer, four days a week for 30 minutes, and we see them making progress that they might not otherwise make in larger classroom settings.” Educator, Portland Public School District

Research-aligned & Culturally Responsive Curriculum

“With our previous [curriculum] adoption, we had to create phonics charts, supplement phonemic awareness with other programs, and add explicit vocabulary instruction ourselves. These gaps required additional work and left students without the comprehensive support they needed. UFLI and Bookworms solve those issues by integrating all these components into one clear and effective program.” Administrator, Klamath Falls

These successes prove that change is possible. But the reality is, the first $90 million only reached a fraction of the students who need support.

WHAT $300 MILLION CAN DO FOR OREGON’S YOUNGEST STUDENTS

Imagine classrooms where every child has the support they need to unlock the power of reading: teachers equipped with the best tools and coaching to guide their students toward success; summer programs giving thousands of children the confidence to step into the school year ready to thrive; and tutoring sessions during the school year when children need more time.

In Oregon we have approximately 240,000 kindergarten through third graders, and it costs $300 million to set each up for literacy success.

This is our chance to create a brighter future for Oregon’s children—one rooted in equity, opportunity, and the belief that every child deserves the tools to succeed.

For questions, please contact Jessica Cobian: [email protected]