Afterschool initiative fights student literacy decline across Indiana

SOUTH BEND, Ind. -- The Indiana Afterschool Network (IAN) has launched a statewide initiative to use grants to assist with improving student reading scores in the wake of their decline over the past decade.

Indiana students have shown declining reading scores in the past decade, going as low as 87.3 percent in IREAD scores before tanking to a low of 81.2 percent during the 2020 pandemic. Scores have risen since, recently rising back up to 87.3 percent, though there is still room to improve student literacy beyond the state's pre-pandemic low.

ABC57's Jordan Hatfield spoke with the IAN's Lakshmi Hasanadka on Tuesday to discuss the network's Literacy Playbook, grant funding, and how important improving reading is for students.

If you would like to learn more about the Literacy Playbook, you can look on the Indiana Afterschool Network's website here.