Lehigh Valley Reads, powered by Lehigh Valley Public Media™ and United Way of the Greater Lehigh Valley, has partnered with Waterford.org to provide 125 Lehigh Valley children access to Waterford UPSTART. Lehigh Valley Reads plans to work with school districts in the region and Community Services for Children to identify these early learners.

Waterford UPSTART is an at-home kindergarten readiness program that contains reading, math and science curriculum through personalized software. Because of Waterford UPSTART’s proven effectiveness, the program was named a 2019 Audacious Project, a collaborative funding initiative housed at TED. Seventy percent of 3-4-year-olds in Lehigh and Northampton counties are without a pre-k program, so Lehigh Valley Reads and Waterford.org thought it was imperative to take action, helping 125 children get the early education they need to begin school ready to learn.

Not only will families receive the award-winning Waterford UPSTART software, but those without access to a computer or internet will also be provided the technology at no cost.

“Waterford.org believes every child should be able to walk into their first day of school confident and ready to learn. We are excited to partner with Lehigh Valley Public Media and United Way of Greater Lehigh Valley to bring that possibility to more children,” said Dr. Benjamin Heuston, CEO of Waterford.org.

The Lehigh Valley Reads initiative is a regional literacy campaign powered by Lehigh Valley Public Media and United Way of the Greater Lehigh Valley, to ensure all Lehigh Valley students read on grade level by the end of third grade by 2025.

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