Thank Your Officials For Voting To Repeal The Third-Grade Reading Retention Requirement

The Michigan legislature recently voted to repeal the harmful third-grade reading retention requirement! Join us in thanking them today!

The third-grade reading retention requirement, a provision in the Read by Grade Three Law passed in 2016, required students who did not meet grade-level reading standards to repeat the third grade. This requirement was an ineffective way to advance students’ educational, social and emotional development. It also produced and replicated inequities, as students of color and low-income students were retained at disproportionate rates.

That’s why we are grateful that the Michigan legislature has recently removed this requirement, while still ensuring that early literacy interventions and support are provided for struggling students. United Way for Southeastern Michigan works to ensure that all children have the support they need to thrive. That’s why we advocated against the Read by Grade Three Law’s passage in 2016. Eliminating the retention requirement avoids delaying students’ educational progress and remedies an inequitable aspect of our educational system. The legislature chose to eliminate this harmful aspect of the law, while still ensuring that struggling students will be provided early literacy supports such as literacy coaches at schools, reading intervention services, and evidence-based curricula and instructional services.

Please join us in contacting our elected officials to thank them for supporting this change to Read by Grade Three!