SAIL Reads Set to Place 14,000 Books Into the Hands and Homes of Children Across Alabama

SAIL Reads Set to Place 14,000 Books Into the Hands and Homes of Children Across Alabama

Summer initiative expands from serving 94 children to 1,400 children increasing student reading performance and community connections

Birmingham, Alabama — (May 28, 2026) — The SAIL Reads Program is set to serve 1,400 students across Alabama this summer. The five-week innovative project is championed by Summer Adventures in Learning (SAIL) in collaboration with the Alabama State Department of Education, the Montgomery Education Foundation, and the Junior League of Birmingham. SAIL Reads kicks off on June 1st in 11 counties, including Jefferson, Mobile, Baldwin, Madison, Hale, Clarke, Montgomery, Tuscaloosa, Limestone and Bibb Counties.

SAIL Reads is a complementary program that supplements SAIL’s core academic classes in reading. It enhances the rigorous instruction with a fun, book-club approach to reading. “After completing a small pilot last summer, our program partners determined that the books help increase student engagement and encourage attendance. They also encourage parent engagement with activities that can be completed at home as the students build their home libraries,” said Suzy Harris, SAIL Program Manager.

Modeled on Montgomery Education Foundation’s successful “MGM Reads,”, SAIL Reads works to counteract summer slide by training summer program instructors, distributing two books per week for a total of 10 culturally relevant books for each child, printing and distributing aligned resources and activities for each book and promoting parent engagement. “The summer reading collection we have curated supports and enriches the important programming that community-based summer programs provide as well as supporting families at home,” said Ann Sikes, President of Montgomery Education Foundation.

SAIL piloted SAIL Reads in 2025 to address severe book scarcity in rural Alabama communities, most considered book deserts, serving 94 K–5 students.

Impact of SAIL Reads 2025 Pilot:

Growth in # of books in the homes of participating students – SAIL READS increased the overall number of books in each home by at least 25%.
Parent sentiment – After completing the program, 97% rated reading at home as highly important.
Change in reading behavior (# minutes reading) at home – After participating in SAIL Reads, all parents reported that their children read at least 30 minutes per week at home.

“The children who participated in SAIL Reads every day increased their scores in double digits. That was such a big win for them,” said Dena LeNoir, CEO, Boys & Girls Club of Southwest Alabama. “We watched so many children grow not only in their reading skills, but also in their confidence. Kids who once felt shy or unsure about reading began to raise their hands, volunteer to read aloud, and even get excited about picking up books on their own. Moments like these remind us how powerful it is when a child discovers the joy of learning,” she said.

SAIL Reads is a prime example of SAIL’s strategy of expanding summer learning by engaging the entire community. This year’s expansion was made possible by an Alabama Summer-and After-School Program (ASAP) grant from the Alabama State Department of Education. The books were distributed to SAIL programs around the state by a team of 30 volunteers serving 33 hours and coordinated by the Junior League of Birmingham.

The SAIL Reads Program reflects SAIL’s commitment to educational enrichment and student achievement during the summer break. For more information on SAIL Reads or to schedule an interview, contact SAIL Program Manager Suzy Harris at suzy@sailalabama.org.