Evidence of Community Need and Description:
According to the United States Census Bureau, approximately 10 percent of women over the age of  25 years in Winnebago County do not have a high school diploma. The gender gap facing women includes an apparent gender-based literacy gap. The Council on Foreign Relations maintains that as efforts are made to improve girls’ education globally, the outcomes can positively affect economic growth, political participation, health and sustainable families.

Recent studies bear out the crucial need for early literacy skills and reading readiness for young children. There is overwhelming consensus that the earliest years of life is the time when a child’s brain is undergoing the most growth and development and that the experiences a child encounters during this critical phase shapes his or her academic, health, and overall lifelong success. The only way to improve third grade reading scores is to focus on the literacy and language skills of children from birth to age 5.

In Rockford we know there is a critical need for literacy and language intervention in our youngest population. According to the Illinois State Board of Education’s 2018 Illinois Kindergarten Individual Development Survey, 40% of children in Rockford were not ready in math, language/literacy, and social emotional development when they enter Kindergarten (Report: More Preschool Now, Less Crime Later Rockford Register Star, 4/24/2019) and in the Rockford Public School District 205, only 17% of 3rd graders met or exceeded expected grade-level reading performance in 2017. To reverse this alarming trend, resources and attention must be devoted to the education and support of parents and caregivers of young children, who are their “primary teachers” before they enter Pre-K or kindergarten. High-quality early education programs that engage these caregivers and their children provide the opportunity to get children on the right track by building a strong foundation for pre-reading and school readiness skills.