Savannah Mayor Van Johnson expressed Monday, Sept. 30, that in the midst of Georgia's "most devastating weather event of all time [Hurricane Helene], reading means the difference between life and death." He emphasized that people have to know how to read when it comes to emergency notices and updates in situations like this past week.
The mayor made the connection between literacy and safety because, while recovery efforts were ongoing last week, the Georgia Council on Literacy launched its Georgia Reads campaign during a press conference and reading rally for third graders at the College Football Hall of Fame in Atlanta.
Through Senate Bill 211, Georgia legislators formed the literacy council, which aims to raise "awareness about the need to improve reading skills in all age groups."
The Georgia Reads campaign was launched to "unify and empower the fragmented literacy ecosystem, guiding it toward a new era of understanding." The launch included the announcement of the Georgia Reads Community Awards , which, come February, will bestow 10 Georgia communities with $25,000 toward ongoing literacy improvement efforts.
Pep rallies for reading
Malcolm Mitchell , NFL Super Bowl Champion with the New England Patrios and former University of Georgia star, has been named the Georgia Reads Coach.
Why a football star as the face of such a campaign?
Since 2016, Mitchell, also a children's book author, has been sharing his personal history of literacy challenges while promoting reading through his Share the Magic Foundation since 2016. He often holds reading rallies, like October 2023's Enmarket Arena rally in Savannah with over 2,000 Savannah-Chatham County Public School System (SCCPSS) second-graders. The rallies typically feature a magician and infuse the energy of a football game into the cause of literacy.
Johnson called Mitchell a "phenomenal ambassador" for Georgia Reads, citing his command of the boisterous crowd at Enmarket a year ago. "He sees them [the children], and they see themselves in him," said Johnson.
Mitchell's foundation as well as the Georgia Municipal Association (GMA) (through its nonprofit, Georgia City Solutions ) partnered with the literacy council for this week's campaign launch, which focuses not only on getting school-aged children to read but also their parents.
"We're covering the entire landscape of literacy and that does include adults," said Mitchell, who struggled to read into his early twenties when he took it upon himself to prioritize literacy by attending book clubs.
According to The State of Literacy in Georgia , a study conducted in 2023 by Deloitte, one in 10 (or nearly 800,000) adult Georgians are "low literate." Deloitte does not provide a definition or parameters in its report for what constitutes "low literacy" and has yet to respond to inquiries seeking clarity. The report is subtitled, "Action Needed for Georgia’s Thriving Workforce and Economy," and highlights the financial impacts that improving literacy in the state would have.
Mitchell mentioned that Georgia Reads is working with state agencies and local nonprofits that are "leading the way as it relates to adult literacy and really allowing them to bestow upon us the wisdom that they have through their years of work." The Georgia Reads resource page provides families, educators and communities with a literacy hub that has links to organizations, coalitions and initiatives at local, state and federal levels.
Mitchel said the idea is to expose communities and individuals to the resources that already exist. He also underscored the exponential impact that having a literate parent at home has on a child's likelihood of becoming a reader.
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What is a Georgia Reads Community?
Mitchell reiterated that Georgia Reads seeks to highlight that literacy is a community effort. "We have to come together for this to become a part of our reality," he said.
Communities throughout Georgia can access more information about how to become a more literacy-minded community as well as apply for Georgia Reads Community Awards at georgiareads.org/georgia-reads-communities/ .
Johnson said that the READ Savannah Taskforce goes beyond childhood literacy and has been "focused on helping people occupationally be able to read and get their GEDs [general education diplomas]." He said Savannah has taken a comprehensive collaborative approach because the city wants "from K-8 to 98, everyone in a household needs to read...the more literary our community is, the better our community does."
The READ Savannah Taskforce, formed in Oct. 2021 by Johnson , stated its mission was “to provide collaborative opportunities and resources to facilitate effective and measurable outcomes in literacy among Savannahians.” To date, the task force's website has yet to provide insights on what exact measurable outcomes have been established or whether it has achieved or updated those outcomes.
Monday not only marked the kickoff of the Georgia Reads campaign, it also opened up applications for the awards, which will recognize 10 community partnership awardees for "progress already made in literacy improvements in the last three to five years." Applications remain open until Nov. 26. Awardees will be announced on Feb. 25, 2025, during Georgia Reads Day at the Capitol as will Share the Magic Foundation's READBowl competition winners.
The foundation's READBowl is a reading challenge meant to incentivize students statewide to read by celebrating their reading achievements akin to how Mitchell was celebrated with each touchdown. Mitchell's hope is that "all of us, not just teachers, but community leaders, small businesses, huge corporations, can invest in the process of making Georgia a more literate state."
Joseph Schwartzburt is the education and workforce development reporter for the Savannah Morning News. You can reach him at JSchwartzburt@gannett.com. Throughout this week and next, Schwartzburt's reporting will highlight Savannah-Chatham County Public Schools Literacy Week, slated for Oct. 14-19, 2024.
This article originally appeared on Savannah Morning News: Savannah Mayor Johnson, football star Malcom Mitchell launch Georgia Reads campaign
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