Newly Elected Senators and Representatives Senate Sheila Mcneill

THE INABILITY TO UNDERSTAND OR PRODUCE WRITTEN INFORMATION. If a child is not reading proficiently by the 4th grade, they have a 78% chance of not catching up. 90% of welfare recipients are either school dropouts or illiterate. 85% of juveniles who interface with the court system are functionally illiterate. 82% of students eligible for free or reduced lunches cannot read proficiently. 3 out of 4 food stamp recipients perform in the lowest literacy levels. 30 Million Word Deficit amongst children read to as toddlers vs. those who are not. Low literacy individuals more often misuse medication because they have trouble reading and understanding the relevant information (warnings, dosage, contraindications, etc.)

(Literacy Pittsburgh) The child to age appropriate book ration at home:

Middle Class Family - 1/13

Low Income Family - 1/300 Nationally, only 35% of public- school students were at or above proficiency in grade 4 reading. In a given state, 4th Grade reading scores are used to predict the number of prison beds they’ll need in the next decade. “You don’t have to burn books to RAY destroy a culture. Just get BRADBURY people to stop reading them.” “Reading is to the mind what JOSEPH ADDISON exercise is to the body.” FREDERICK “Once you learn to read you will DOUGLASS be forever free.” "Reading is important. If you know how to read, BARACK OBAMA then the whole world opens up to you." “To read is to MALCOLM give yourself the best opportunity MITCHELL at being the best you.” https://youtu.be/uPLwQm2y83E LITERACY IS THE ANSWER SHARE THE MAGIC FOUNDATION

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