CHARLOTTE, N.C. — The same maps of Charlotte that reveal inequities in housing, access to fresh food and access to homeownership are now showing another disparity.
That's why a Charlotte-based nonprofit is seeking solutions by raising reading levels right here in the Queen City through an initiative to get more kids reading at a young age.
The crescent and the wedge. It's a shape that North Carolinians are familiar with.
"Most of the deserts sit on this exact kind of format," Kelly Cates, the deputy director of Promising Pages, said. "The red represents our homes that have 10 or fewer books in them. The dark green indicators are up to 100 books."
Promising Pages works to get more books into homes. Cates said the disparities among children aren't reflected just on a wall or a map, but in statistics and classrooms across the Charlotte area. Only 1 in 300 kids have access to an age-appropriate book in low-income neighborhoods, according to Promising Pages.
Pair that with data showing that 80% of economically disadvantaged kids in Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools weren't reading at their grade level last year, and you can see why Promising Pages is seeking solutions to the inequities facing children in many parts of the city.
The nonprofit's work can be seen in real time. Free-to-read bookstands can be found all over neighborhoods in the Charlotte area. The purpose isn't just to provide free and easy access to reading, but to make sure kids have access to books that are suitable to them, as well.
"Around 95% of the children we serve are children of color and organically, the books that we're getting in are not necessarily representative of the kids we serve," Cates explained. "Kids need themselves in the books they read."
Promising Pages needs more than books, too. One of their biggest issues might surprise you.
"We're having a really hard time finding a space that's centrally located and then we just need more employees to actually help us do the work."
That work brings Cates back to the wall, where Cates has one thing in mind.
"We want to light it up green," she said.
Contact Kia Murray at kmurray@wcnc.com and follow her on Facebook, X and Instagram.
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