Op/Ed: Lilly Endowment takes first step. Now it's up to Hoosiers to improve literacy

Education for all children is an inalienable right. Further, a quality education is foundational to an individual’s ability to thrive.

While our Indiana K-12 educators accomplish a great deal with limited resources, few would debate that the lack of necessary resources dedicated to foundational reading skills is one of the most critical obstacles Indiana’s K-12 learners face every day.

Last week, Lilly Endowment Inc. acknowledged that by awarding more than $20 million in grants to 28 colleges and universities across Indiana through its initiative, Advancing the Science of Reading in Indiana (ASRI).

The grants will support the next generation of teachers in significantly improving the reading abilities of Indiana’s K-12 students. The grants are a part of a $111 million investment by Lilly Endowment Inc. and the state of Indiana aimed at supporting early literacy for students. This is unequivocally a step in the right direction, yet it is the responsibility of Hoosiers everywhere to contribute to solving the issue of literacy among K-12 students in Indiana.

Reading is the foundation of success for our students in- and beyond the classroom, most notably in our communities and in the workforce. In fact, poor reading is associated with increased school dropout, depression, low self-esteem and incarceration, among other negative outcomes. Evidence shows that third grade is the most pivotal year for literacy development in K-12.

Third grade students’ results from the Indiana Reading Evaluation and Determination, or IREAD-3, ultimately measure and predict a child’s ability to learn through reading moving forward IREAD pass rates in Indiana peaked in the  2012-13 school year, with 91.4% of third graders passing the assessment. In 2021-22, the rate was 81.6%– a nearly 10% drop in 10 years.

The decline is indicative of data that shows that 18.4%, or 1-5, of Indiana’s third grade students are not reading proficiently by the end of third grade.

In response to that data, Indiana Secretary of Education, Dr. Katie Jenner, announced the state’s goal to have 95% of third graders pass IREAD-3 by 2027. A pledge that aligns with the mission of the Lilly Endowment Inc.’s investment in colleges and universities, such as Ball State, Indiana, and Purdue Universities, and WGU Indiana.

The ASRI grants awarded to 28 colleges and universities across the state will disrupt and create a model curriculum for how each prepares educators in literacy instruction using Science of Reading (SoR) strategies, which focus on phonics, fluency, vocabulary, and comprehension. The grants can also provide stipends for professional development for instructional faculty and academic leaders to train with new materials, learn from national experts and observe SoR practices in schools.

The Science of Reading is revolutionary, and it is clear to me that equipping Indiana’s educators with these methods is the most effective way to increase literacy development in the classroom. But it shouldn’t be and can’t be the only measure taken toward eliminating the devastating impact of illiteracy has on our children, communities, and the workforce.

As a mother of three children and lifelong Hoosier, I’m calling on fellow parents and all of Indiana, to join the Lilly Endowment Inc. and our state leaders in contributing to helping our K-12 learners excel in reading.

Volunteer to tutor at school or your local literacy program. Parents and caregivers, make time to read with your kids for 20 minutes every evening, and challenge them to read signs and labels at the grocery store or around your community. Encourage children to help their fellow classmates who are struggling with reading in the classroom. In our communities, advocate to create opportunities for out-of-classroom development, such as after-school reading workshops or elementary-age book clubs.

Join Lilly Endowment Inc. and state leaders and invest your time and energy in this mission to improve foundational reading skills of Indiana children. Together, we can build on the foundation created by these grants and initiatives and watch as our K-12 learners across the state become successful Hoosiers in our communities and workforce. Alison Bell has more than 20 years of higher education leadership experience and is the regional vice president of Western Governors University, overseeing Western Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Ohio, Indiana, Michigan, and Kentucky. WGU currently has more than 168,000 students and more than 349,000 alumni nationwide.