Reach Out and Read CEO discusses the organization's fundraising

By Heather Fletcher

The W.K. Kellogg Foundation’s investment in Reach Out and Read, and the children our program serves, will significantly impact the education systems in these three states. Currently, Michigan, Mississippi and New Mexico rank 34th, 48th and 49th in the country in fourth-grade reading rates, with more than 70 percent of children in each state failing to read proficiently. The grant from W.K. Kellogg Foundation serves as a special initiative that will use Reach Out and Read’s research-proven model to target children in these states and equip them with the tools and skills they’ll need to enter school ready to read and succeed.

FS: Have you had any major difficulties or setbacks you've faced along the way? Things you would do differently with your fundraising?
EP: The low cost of the program makes Reach Out and Read unique: We need only $50 to fund a single child in the five-year program. As a result, it is a challenge to get donors to understand that we still need large grants to fund our operating expenses and other program costs to ensure the high quality and impact of our program across each of our 4,654 sites. More often than not, we undersell ourselves and fail to capitalize on our true capabilities to maximize the program’s scope.

In terms of redirecting our fundraising efforts, I would like to see Reach Out and Read work to build infrastructure. Historically, the bulk of our fundraising efforts have been primarily driven toward money to buy books, and along the way we never built the infrastructure necessary to sustain the program’s growth. Now, because we have achieved scale, we can place a greater emphasis on building support within the program and creating much more sustainable growth in the future.

FS: What advice would you give to organizations similar to yours, in size and annual operating budget?
EP: I would urge organizations similar to Reach Out and Read to continue traditional fundraising methods, such as cultivating individual donor bases and expanding corporate and foundation grants, but to simultaneously look for a scalable, sustainable business model. Look at how comparable organizations operate, and identify how you can create the business model that works for your organization. Think boldly. Fundraise for where you want to be in the future rather than where you currently stand. In light of the economy, think optimistically; people are still winning and giving big.