KANSAS CITY, (AP) - The National Civic League wants more children reading at their grade level.
The Denver-based nonprofit announced Wednesday in Kansas City that it's working with a group called the Campaign for Grade-Level Reading.
The goal is to increase by 50 percent the number of low-income children reading on grade level in third grade in at least a dozen states during the next decade.
Through the National Civic League's All-American City award program, it will recognize communities that address early childhood learning, boosting school attendance and reducing the academic losses students experience over the summer. All three are tied to school achievement.
A recent report shows children who don't read by the end of third grade and live in poverty are six times more likely to fail to graduate from high school.