A local councilwoman is launching a new program to help kids with reading. Grovetown Councilwoman Ceretta Smith was inspired after learning that 68% of fourth graders in Georgia aren’t reading proficiently. “I literally sat there with my mouth wide open,” she recalled. “Nationally it’s 70% of fourth graders are not reading and then hearing about the long-term impact.”

Smith, a lifelong reader, sees literacy as essential for education, the economy, and society. She believes lack of access to books in low-income families and adult literacy struggles contribute to the problem. “So maybe some of these same children that are struggling, they have parents that are struggling,” Smith said. “It’s just like a cycle that just keeps repeating itself. We’ve gotta figure out is is that a part of the disconnect.”

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