Literacy — We’re All About It
A non-profit with a vision: Every child in the United States reading at grade level by third grade.
Our Mission
UEHL’s mission is to bring awareness of reading scores of Black youth throughout the San Francisco Bay Area, educate parents, teachers, and community leaders on literacy instruction, and support a basic allowance for housing (BAH) for teachers, one community at a time.
We are calling on parents, educators, and community leaders to become emotionally and financially involved in literacy for Black youth. UEHL is committed to improving reading outcomes for children, specifically for Black children, in the San Francisco Bay Area. We promote literacy via a three-prong approach that includes:
A comprehensive, research-validated reading program for children, specifically for Black youth and limited-access communities
Professional development and training for educators, parents, and community leaders that reflects up-to-date reading and language research
Advocacy and support for a federally funded basic allowance for housing (BAH) for teachers
Three Initiatives Driving One Mission
Literacy
Literacy is the foundation of success in our professional and personal lives, yet 50 percent of our children are not reaching the minimum reading standard. Language is requisite to relatedness, academic success, and personal wellbeing; and in the 21st century, reading is — for the first time in history — fundamental to our understanding and experience of language.
We at UEHL realize that children who are falling behind in reading are falling behind in life. We recognize the reality of the school-to-prison pipeline, the overwhelming statistics that connect literacy directly to economic and social success, as well as the correlation between mental health and literacy.
Awareness
Public understanding of the reading crisis in our schools is key to increasing national literacy. Through ongoing research, we continue to learn about how the reading brain works; after decades of arguing methodology, educators can come together in general agreement. Research points to a multi-pronged approach, which incorporates phonics, sight learning, and language development. We need to find better ways to share that knowledge with teachers, parents, and community leaders across the country, so that we may effectively and efficiently get every child reading at grade level by third grade. It is time we get this right for the future of our children.
Housing
We advocate for the creation of a federally funded Basic Allowance for Housing (BAH) to support the vital role teachers play in our communities. Currently, teachers cannot afford to live in the communities where they work.
With a federally funded BAH, we attract the most qualified teachers to our classrooms and make a career in education a viable option for more college graduates.
Get Involved
Sign our housing petition, volunteer, or become an advocate.
