Our Kids Read Association (OKRA)

Reading (and being Read to) has been linked to all sorts of amazing benefits, including enhancing creativity, releasing endorphins (positive effect on mood), increasing empathy, decreasing stress, enhancing memory, improving school performance, and increasing vocabulary. In addition, a long-term study by the anne e. casey foundation found that students who were not proficient in reading by the end of third grade were four times more likely to drop out of high school than proficient readers. The study further concluded that 88 percent of students who failed to earn a high school diploma were struggling readers in third grade.our Kids Read is therefore focusing on pre-k through 5th grade as the target for Our reading programs in hopes of creating lifelong readers to reap the benefits of reading and all of its benefits.

The Our Kids Read "remote reading buddies" program connects white and blue-collar professionals, retirees, and high school students looking to satisfy their community service hours with young people in Our programs who are behind in their reading skills. We recruit from large and small companies, looking for individuals who can spare at least 30 minutes per week to Read to a child (minimum 8-week commitment). We aim to expand the reading buddies program exponentially over the next few years: 250 reading buddies in 2024, and 1,000 reading buddies in 2025.