Reach Out and Read

Five books a day = 1.4 million more words by kindergarten. Reach Out and Read shared 7.1 million books — and guidance about shared reading — across 8.8 million well-child visits in FY23. Imagine our combined impact!

Reach Out and Read seeks diverse, passionate individuals to help us build a world where every child has the resources and relationships to thrive! Positions open across the country include: At Affiliates (hybrid) — Program staff in Georgia, New Hampshire/Vermont, DC, Maryland, and Oregon — Executive Director in Iowa/Nebraska — Grant Specialist (Washington) — Associate Director of Development (Georgia) On our National team (fully remote) — Senior Manager of Inclusion and Belonging — Development Manager (Senior Associate of Individual Giving) — Associate Director of Development (Major Gifts Officer) Explore the listings to see how you or someone you know could make a difference in the lives and futures of millions of children nationwide!

At Reach Out and Read, we recognize the profound impact that caregiver well-being has on early literacy and child development. When caregivers thrive, children flourish. Let’s continue to work together to support families and promote early literacy as a pathway to better emotional and cognitive health for our children! https://lnkd.in/gd68bNeN  

“The [Reach Out & Read Illinois] program has proven that it has a track record of preparing children for kindergarten, strengthening child and parental bonds, building relationships between parents and health care providers and facilitating early learning and brain development for children,” — Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker. Reach Out and Read Illinois, United Way of Rock River Valley, Governor Pritzker, and State Senator Steve Stadelman partner to bring our program to Winnebago County!

Reach Out and Read is gearing up to bring our transformational model to more Ohio families! “Creating a strong, statewide Affiliate will help us reach more children under 5 and empower the Ohio families who need us the most. We’ve prioritized Ohio’s major metro areas and rural Appalachian communities. This approach will allow us to provide centralized oversight, targeted expansion, and sustainable funding, ultimately amplifying our impact on early literacy and school readiness for Ohio's children." — Ruth Gado Coleman, PhD, National Senior Director of Growth. Details: reachoutandread.org/ohio

"Parents can never underestimate their importance as a child's first teacher. Developing a ritual where you're reading to your child every night is incredibly impactful. We see families that go through the Reach Out and Read program have as much as a three- to six-month vocabulary advantage when the child starts kindergarten, through going through that model and keeping up with the daily practice." Emily Marchese, ED of Reach Out and Read of Greater New York, talks about Reach Out and Read’s impact on CUNY TV's Book It.

New research published in The Lancet Child & Adolescent Health reveals that programs that focus on both parenting skills and mental health can benefit children under 3 emotionally and cognitively, yet parents — especially mothers — often receive insufficient mental health care. This study underscores the need to enhance family support, as parental mental health significantly impacts children's outcomes.

“Spotlight on Poverty,” a #RORPodcast series, examines the intersection of poverty and healthy early relationships. In our latest episode, Emily Callahan and Jennifer Bronsdon, from Parents as Teachers National Center, underscore the need for Early Relational Health interventions to meet children and families where they are at — in their homes. They highlight how home visiting is a unique way to enter a family's world — not just to provide resources and information, but also to see and understand them and their lifestyles, cultures, and values and, ultimately, make a lasting, meaningful impact. Hear their conversation with host Dipesh Navsaria at https://lnkd.in/eANzHx8H or wherever you listen to podcasts.

This spring, Nathan Tseboh Chomilo, MD, FAAP, FACP, Medical Director for the State of Minnesota's Medicaid and MinnesotaCare Program, led a conversation about meaningful ways to incorporate Early Relational Health as a core element in pediatric care. Panelists included Aditi Mallick, MD, Acting Director of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services Office of Minority Health; Pahoua Yang H., Senior Vice President of Government and Community Relations at HealthPartners; and Jean Boock, father of graduate of Reach Out and Read at Bellevue Hospital.

"Books create not only the opportunity for children and families to get lost in a story or journey, but they also allow families and children to see themselves." CEO Marty Martinez joined the Reading Teachers Lounge podcast to talk about why we prioritize diverse representation and how we partnered with Scholastic on the 35 for 35 collection to get the right books into kids’ hands.