Room to Read's Program Overview

Education is the most effective tool for solving the world’s greatest challenges

Healthier Families

If all women completed secondary education, child deaths would be cut in half, saving three million lives.

Climate Justice

Worldwide access to primary and girls’ education could result in a 70 gigaton reduction of carbon dioxide by 2050.13 Deaths caused by natural disasters and extreme temperature events could be 60% lower by 2050 if 70% of women were able to achieve a lower-secondary-school education.

Safer and More Peaceful Communities

In sub-Saharan Africa, the risk of conflict in countries with higher education equality is less than half that of areas with lower equality in education.

Thriving Economies

Over 40 years, income per capita is 23% higher in a country with more equal education.

Poverty Reduction

If historically low-income countries were to reach their goal of universal secondary education by 2030, then by 2050, per capita earnings would increase by 75%, thereby lifting 60 million people out of poverty.

Room to Read's work in Tanzanian classroom

What We Do

Room to Read addresses both access to education and quality of education, meeting children’s learning needs both in and out of the classroom.

We support children in communities experiencing deep educational, gender and economic inequities, where investments in education accelerate positive change.

Our work advances:

Literacy - supporting children in developing literacy skills with a love of reading.

Gender Equality - supporting adolescents, particularly girls, in developing life skills that promote gender equality.

Through Room to Read’s programming, students all over the world gain skills that enable them to pursue lifelong learning, make informed decisions, and become changemakers in their communities.

Room to Read's Theory of Change work overview graphic

How We Do It

Through our unique experience as a leading implementer, Room to Read has developed an evidence-based, sustainable and scalable approach to improving foundational learning outcomes for children, through our expertise in:

Curriculum and Content

We create and distribute curricular materials and quality children’s books as well as other types of media in local languages that support children’s learning.

Educator Training and Coaching

We train and support educators with the tools and skills to help students thrive.

Delivery Structures

We scale our programming by partnering with government education systems as well as program partners and non-formal learning systems to create safe and accessible learning spaces, such as children’s libraries.

Research and Insights

We conduct research, evaluations and program implementation monitoring to ensure program quality, continually evolving our programming and sharing our learnings with others.

Our dedicated local teams are situated directly in the areas we serve - adapting to meet the unique needs of each community and ensuring solutions are effective and tailored to fit local contexts.

We honor the dignity of the children we work with, preparing students not only with the skills they need but with the treatment they deserve so that they can recognize their self-worth and the value they bring to themselves, their families and their communities.

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Supporting children in developing literacy skills

Children's Literacy

Supporting adolescents in developing life skills

Gender Equality

Tracking our impact and results around the world

Impact & Reach

We will not stop until every child has access to a quality education.

The current generation of children are experiencing the largest loss of learning in recorded history, and learning poverty has increased by a third in low-and middle-income countries.

By the end of 2027, Room to Read aims to double the number of children we serve each year, the number of communities we support each year and the number of partners we work with, while delivering positive, measurable learning and life outcomes.

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