A variety of elements go into building strong readers.

Access to books is crucial, not only in the classroom but at home. Keeping students engaged in reading on a year-round basis is a proven way to keep their reading levels on par with peers. Developing lifelong readers can even help families improve literacy. But, like building any system, all of these improvements require funding.

With the majority of schools in Ohio losing state funds or receiving no increases, finding that money may become more difficult over the next two years.

Fortunately, the state was awarded a 35 million dollar Striving Readers Comprehensive Literacy Grant from the U.S. Department of Education, helping to boost those shortfalls.

This grant was created to provide schools with the funds to help students with low literacy scores. The funding applies to students from preschool to 12th grade. The award will be available for three years to provide resources to help students with disabilities, those for whom English is a second language, and those living in poverty.

The state earned the grant by developing a plan that would put this money to the best use. Part of the funds will be going into the Get It, Got It, Go! program the state has been using for the last six years. The program was developed by the University of Minnesota to assess early indicators of a student’s literacy in preschool.

Other programs in the state, like the Early Childhood Advisory Council, utilize the funds for the most significant impact on young learners.

Ultimately, students are going to see a big boost from this grant. More than 95% of the funds ($33.25 million) will be going directly to the schools. This grant, combined with the improvements made with the Third Grade Reading Guarantee, will improve the reading levels at a young age.

This stage of development for children is critical for building critical lifelong literacy skills. Other funds distributed throughout the year include Title I money and grants through charities that can provide even more support for districts.

Currently, the state is working on the application process. They are looking to offer the applications, as well as a website to help with the process, late in 2017.