Classrooms, libraries and even the Utah State Capitol rotunda went quiet for an hour Friday as more than 275,000 students and adults were expected to set down their phones and pick up a book for the first-ever statewide Utah Reads Read-a-Thon. Gov. Spencer Cox opened the day with a livestreamed welcome at 9:30 a.m., while First Lady Abby Cox greeted students reading together inside the Capitol.
The scale of the turnout, drawn from a media advisory posted by the Utah Governor's Office, reflects an effort organizers hoped would reach every corner of the state, with events planned at schools, libraries, businesses and community organizations across Utah. As ABC4 Utah reported, Cox used his livestream to highlight participating schools and organizations taking part in the day, and the governor's remarks were streamed live as part of the outlet's coverage.
At the Capitol, First Lady Abby Cox welcomed students from the Salt Lake Chamber Community Builders summer reading program, who were invited to read together in the rotunda, according to the same ABC4 Utah account. Marissa's Books donated free books for students attending that Capitol event, and the outlet reported that each student in attendance was set to receive a free title of their own.
Coxes Visit Guadalupe School
Gov. Cox and the first lady also visited Guadalupe School earlier that morning, where they read aloud with students and helped them pick out titles at a book fair set up for the occasion, per ABC4 Utah's reporting. The visit fit a pattern the couple has followed since launching the broader initiative: the first lady gave a storybook reading in what was described as a mouse voice at the Sprague branch of the Salt Lake City Public Library when Utah Reads officially launched on Aug. 28, according to Deseret News, with the governor joining her there.
Other schools built their own versions of the day. Eagle Valley Elementary School planned a reading event that paired its students with visiting teens from Cedar Valley High School, who shared their favorite books from their own elementary years, ABC4 Utah reported. Lehi High School put together a daylong reading celebration featuring reading bingo, designated reading moments and spaces set aside for students to read throughout the day.
Clubs and Local Businesses Pitch In
At Sky View High School, the campus reading club organized student participation in the Read-a-Thon, and local businesses donated treats for students taking part, according to ABC4 Utah. Pacific Heritage Academy took a different approach, incorporating storytelling from the cultures represented by its own staff into its Read-a-Thon activities.
Statewide, organizers framed the one-hour reading break as something anyone could join, inviting all Utahns to take part through schools, libraries, businesses and community organizations, according to ShowUpUtah.org. The site encouraged families to set aside one hour from their regular routine to pick up a book. Separately, FOX 13 Now reported that partners including Granite Credit Union Foundation and Marissa's Bookstore helped expand the event's reach, offering free books while supplies lasted at participating locations, and that Utahns could sign up for the event at UtahReads.org.
Why Literacy Became a Statewide Push
The Read-a-Thon follows a stretch of sobering data on how Utah kids are reading. In 2025, just 50.3% of Utah third graders achieved grade-level proficiency in reading, according to a report from the Kem C. Gardner Policy Institute, which found nearly half of the state's K-3 students were not meeting grade-level reading expectations as of its January report. The institute also found reading proficiency was significantly lower among English-language learners, students with disabilities, Hispanic/Latino students and economically disadvantaged students.
The institute's data echoes a pattern familiar to the governor, who named reading a statewide priority at a literacy symposium in Ogden in January, per ABC4 Utah's reporting, and has recommended additional funding for education and literacy campaigns. Childhood literacy has been described as a major focus for both Cox and the first lady, and Deseret News reported that literacy is a defining priority for the couple, with the Read-a-Thon staged specifically to champion lifelong reading habits. More than a third of parents report reading with their children three days a week or less, according to a separate report from ABC4.com, a gap the Utah Reads initiative aims to close by encouraging reading engagement at home to help accelerate student academic success across the state. The initiative's website, UtahReads.org, offers family reading tips, an interactive map of Free Little Libraries, and free reading games and adventure cards, Deseret News reported following the campaign's August launch.
