A child who cannot read proficiently by the end of third grade is four times more likely to drop out of high school. That statistic alone should command the attention of every employer, elected official and community leader in Utah.
A new report from the Kem C. Gardner Policy Institute makes the case even more urgent: Only 50.3% of Utah’s third graders are reading at grade level. Nearly half of our youngest learners are falling behind at the very moment their education shifts from learning to read, to reading to learn.
This is not simply an education challenge; it is a workforce challenge and an economic competitiveness challenge.
At the Utah Chamber, employers across every industry and every corner of the state share a common concern: They need skilled, capable workers. The workforce pipeline begins not with a college degree or a technical certification, but with a child learning to read.
Research consistently shows that third-grade reading proficiency is one of the strongest predictors of long-term academic and economic success. Students who read proficiently by third grade are far more likely to graduate high school, pursue postsecondary education and enter the workforce prepared to contribute. Those who fall behind face compounding disadvantages that limit their earning potential and narrow their opportunities. The Annie E. Casey Foundation has called early literacy the foundation for breaking the cycle of intergenerational poverty and strengthening a state’s economic competitiveness.
For a state that prides itself on economic dynamism, low unemployment and innovation, these numbers should be a call to action. We cannot sustain our momentum if nearly half of our children are struggling to read before reaching middle school.
The good news is that this is a solvable problem.
The Gardner Institute’s report notes that peer-reviewed research finds only 1 to 3% of students experience severe reading difficulty when they receive consistent, evidence-based support. That means that the vast majority of children who are currently behind can catch up with the right interventions.
Mississippi offers a powerful example. A state that once ranked near the bottom in national literacy now ranks near the top — not because of a single policy change, but because of a sustained, comprehensive effort that aligned curriculum, expanded coaching, strengthened early screening and invested support systems across the board.
Utah has taken important steps. The Early Literacy Outcomes Improvement Act, passed in 2022, set a statewide goal of 70% third-grade reading proficiency by 2027. Gov. Cox has proposed significant new investments, including $80 million for paraeducator support in early elementary classrooms. These commitments are important, but reaching our goal will require more than government action alone.
Through Utah Rising, the statewide economic vision spearheaded by the Utah Chamber and the Salt Lake Chamber, education and workforce development are foundational priorities. Early literacy is the bedrock on which our entire workforce pipeline is built. When we call on the Legislature to prioritize early literacy and invest in evidence-based classroom interventions, we do so because employers are telling us they feel the downstream effects of a workforce that was not adequately prepared from the start.
But advocacy is only part of the equation.
The most effective literacy efforts bring together educators, families, community organizations and the private sector in shared purpose. Employers can support early childhood reading through philanthropic investment, volunteer programs and workplace policies that give parents the time and flexibility to engage in their children’s education. Local chambers and business associations can amplify the message that literacy is an economic imperative, not just an academic one. And every Utahn who reads to a child, mentors a student or supports a local school strengthens our future workforce.
We owe it to our children and to the future of our state to treat early literacy with the urgency and seriousness it demands. The research is clear, the data is sobering and the path forward is achievable. What is needed now is the collective will to act. Because Utah’s greatest economic asset has always been its people. Let’s make sure we’re investing in them from the very beginning.
