Gov. Bill Lee is turning the page on literacy in Tennessee, dedicating an entire month to encourage young minds to read more. March has been proclaimed Literacy Month, with Read Across America Week marked as March 2-6. The governor took a hands-on approach by visiting Pleasant View Elementary School, part of the Cheatham County School District, where he read to students and handed out books alongside the Governor's Early Literacy Foundation.
In a push that'll please parents, Lee has put over $33 million on the line in his Fiscal Year 2024-25 budget proposal to keep literacy programs for kids in K-3 humming. “Tennessee students are leading the nation in reading proficiency gains thanks to our state’s strong K-3rd grade literacy strategy, and in the month of March, we’re recognizing our continued commitment to literacy,” Gov. Lee said on his school visit. Lee's support for enhancing kids' reading skills has been a hallmark of his administration, particularly since the shift in education tactics following the 2020 pandemic disruptions.
This effort builds on previous success stories, like Reading 360 and the TN ALL Corps. These initiatives offer a buffet of services to students, including optional grants, tutoring, and summer camps. With a clear focus on getting kids back in the classroom full time, Tennessee prides itself on leading the nation in in-person learning availability post-2020.
For those lil' bookworms, the phonics-based instruction now being delivered by newly empowered Tennessee teachers could be a game-changer. A whopping forty percent of third graders in the state are now meeting expectations in reading - a statistic that's music to the ears of parents and educators alike. Gov. Lee's legislation ushered in with wide-ranging bipartisan support back in 2021 and continues to pave the way for reading success through regular screenings, tutoring, and the opportunity to attend the largest state-run summer school and tutoring programs in America.
