City Of Las Vegas Named ‘Bright Spot Community’

Las Vegas Recognized For Supporting School And Community Success

The Campaign for Grade-Level Reading announced today that it has named the city of Las Vegas a 2021 “Bright Spot Community” for its responses to the COVID crisis last year.

Specifically, the Campaign is highlighting communities that developed exemplary or innovative responses to the COVID crisis, including new or adaptive roles, programs, organizational relationships/collaborations, policies and/or resources. In particular, the Campaign is recognizing communities for crafting solutions that seem especially effective, replication-worthy and/or deserving of being sustained during the post-COVID period.

A collaborative effort by funders, nonprofit partners, business leaders, government agencies, states and communities to ensure that more children in low-income families succeed in school and graduate prepared for college, a career and active citizenship, the Campaign focuses on promoting early school success as an important building block of more hopeful futures for children in economically challenged families and communities.

“Despite the challenges of a pandemic, the city and our collaborative community worked together to develop and implement programs that provide children with the tools they need to be successful in school,” said Mayor Carolyn G. Goodman. “We appreciate this national recognition as a ‘Bright Spot Community’ and look forward to increasing our success.”

Recognizing the seriousness of learning loss during the pandemic, especially for at-risk youth, the city of Las Vegas partnered with the Las Vegas-Clark County Library District to provide safe, weekday Vegas Strong Academies, where distance learning was supported — particularly needed while the local schools remained closed. The city also implemented an employee youth care program, community navigator program to assist families with resources, virtual Summer Learning Academies and Strong Start GO! Preschool Academies.

About the Campaign for Grade-Level Reading

Since its launch in 2010, the Campaign for Grade-Level Reading has grown to include more than 300 communities, representing 45 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands and two provinces in Canada — with 5,000+ local organizations and 510 state and local funders (including 200+ United Ways). To learn more, visit gradelevelreading.net and follow the movement on Twitter @readingby3rd.