A new report from the University of Utah’s Kem C. Gardner Institute found a concerning number of elementary school students are reading behind grade level, with only the Park City School District meeting the state’s goal of having 70% of students proficient by third grade.
Only 50.3% of third grade students statewide met grade-level expectations in 2025, according to the Kem C. Gardner report, despite a push by the state Legislature to have 70% of third grade students proficient in reading by 2027. The report determined the Piute School District in southern Utah had the lowest literacy rate, with less than 30% of its third graders meeting expectations.
The Park City School District, meanwhile, was described as “the only school district meeting the statutory goal” of more than 70% proficiency. Specifically, the district reported 70.1% of its third graders as reading on grade level, narrowly surpassing the state’s benchmark.
“Research confirms that students who read proficiently by third grade are more likely to stay on grade level, graduate from high school and enroll in college,” explained Katie McGinn, a literacy specialist with the Park City School District. “We are opening doors to a future where every path is possible. Ultimately, high literacy rates lead to higher earnings, better health and stronger community engagement.”
McGinn said the district’s approach to reading is rooted in Scarborough’s Reading Rope, which was developed by Hollis Scarborough, a leading literacy expert and psychologist. The Reading Rope focuses on language comprehension and word recognition as key components to building a strong reader.
Traditionally, the two components are depicted as individual skills, or strands, which intertwine to create one strong reading rope as a student betters their abilities.
“The journey to becoming a skilled reader begins in our preschool classrooms,” McGinn said. “We focus on the critical building blocks of literacy: oral language, phonemic awareness and phonics. These early skills empower students to decode words effectively and develop the background knowledge necessary to comprehend text.”
The district uses a structured literacy program to teach students phonics, or the relationship between sounds and letters, which is what helps readers pronounce and understand new words, even if they don’t know the definition. As students get older, the district also incorporates language comprehension through assignments and projects, which could involve writing, listening and speaking skills in addition to reading.
“Early investment in preschool is critical for building the foundation of literacy,” McGinn said. “It develops phonemic awareness, the ability to hear individual sounds, which is a key indicator of future reading success. If a student cannot hear sounds, they cannot match them to letters, making spelling and decoding a struggle. Investing resources at this stage allows us to possibly shift a child’s trajectory by kindergarten.”
McGinn attributed the district’s success to its recently implemented evidence-based teaching materials, which are created based on scientific advances in the reading acquisition field, and individual educators’ commitment to the curriculum.
“Our incredibly dedicated teachers worked hard to learn new materials, adjust schedules, embrace different pedagogies and reimagine systems and structures,” McGinn said. “We relied on student data to make necessary shifts and utilized feedback cycles at all district levels to maintain our vision and communicate next steps. All our work aligning the new system centered on academic success for every student.”
Teachers constantly gather information on students’ literacy to determine who may be struggling in order to devote extra attention to those in need. The same programs are used in both classrooms and intervention spaces to make learning easier for the student, and schools have allotted time for students to practice reading in small groups.
“Reading engages specific parts of the brain, from Broca’s area, which handles speech, to the parieto-temporal region for decoding and the occipito-temporal region for sight recognition,” McGinn said. “Because these connections are not natural, unlike speaking, reading doesn’t just happen via exposure. It requires explicit instruction.”