In 2024, the U.S. Senate designated September as National Literacy Month with a resolution celebrating reading as a “cornerstone for personal growth, economic opportunity, and a strong society.” 

It documented low reading proficiency among both children and adults and acknowledged some of the major causes and consequences of low literacy. 

Most encouragingly, it emphasized the need for cross-sector involvement, calling for government entities, schools, nonprofits, businesses and individuals to participate in this month of observance.

What the resolution did not do, however, was promote any meaningful solutions to this multigenerational crisis. Since last September, new assessment data on both children and adults has shown increasing cause for concern. 

The most recent international survey of adult skills revealed that 28 percent of U.S. adults aged 16-65 read below the equivalent of a third grade level — a 9 percent increase since 2017. The 2024 National Assessment of Educational Progress showed declines in reading scores for both fourth and eighth grade students.

While declining K-12 literacy scores are frequently attributed to lingering effects of the pandemic, the comparable data around adult literacy suggests that broader factors are at play. Scores have steadily declined across all ages for at least a decade.