Our mission is to get every student reading at or above grade level within the first years of school through the power and discipline of the arts, especially students whose environment or circumstances put them in greater need of support. To accomplish our mission, we partner with schools and train their teachers to deliver an engaging and innovative reading improvement program, Benchmarks, for 50 minutes a day during school hours throughout the school year. We target schools with poor reading scores and high percentages of low-income students where we provide our specialized Coaches and other services on-site to inspire students to learn and teachers to grow. Established in 1983 as a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt nonprofit organization, we have served more than 50,000 students dramatically improve their reading skills.