Building Confidence, One Reader at a Time: Inside Reach’s Read to Succeed Program
- Feb 2
- 3 min read
Can you imagine not being able to read street signs, directions on prescription bottles, or your child’s homework? When we think of adults who face this roadblock, we often think of people who learned a language other than English as their first language. In reality, there are adults in our community whose first language is English, yet they still struggle to read at their age-appropriate level. Do you know anyone in this situation? If so, send them our way! I am Kate Althoff, and my colleague, Julie Christian, and I are ready to tutor, using a speech-to-text reading program that respects an adult learner. Through one-on-one tutoring, we can springboard these adults into a future of improved literacy. We work with multi-syllable words within the first few hours of instruction, and we find great results after just a few months of weekly hour-long lessons at the Reach classroom. This help is offered at NO cost to the learner, thanks to a generous grant from the Sioux Falls Area Community Foundation.
A Student’s Story (October 2025)
Laurissa: My name is Laurissa. I’m 23 years old.
Kate: Laurissa called Reach back in January, and we figured out pretty quickly that we’d be a good match. We started tutoring in early February, and we’ve already finished our initial tutoring phase. Now we’re moving on to writing and seeing how that goes.
She’s been a star student. She’s been here almost every week and has worked incredibly hard. It’s been such a joy getting to know her.
Kate: Why did you call Reach in the first place?
Laurissa: I got really tired of not being able to live up to my potential or be where I wanted to be.
Kate: She comes once a week for about an hour. Do you want to tell them what we do during our tutoring sessions?
Laurissa: We work on my ability to sound out words. We break them down into sections and then bring them back together again. We work on ways to spell sounds, and I really enjoy that time.
Kate: What’s been your favorite part?
Laurissa: Seeing my growth. It’s been a little difficult, but now when I’m out, I like to read signs and things, so I know where I’m at, what I’m doing, and what’s going on. It’s been really exciting to see that part of me.
Kate: What’s been the hardest part?
Laurissa: Trusting myself and knowing that I can do it. For so long, I didn’t think I could.
Kate: How has Reach been helpful for you?
Laurissa: It’s been really good. I was really scared about getting my license, and that was a big barrier for me. Reach gave me confidence and made me feel like I really could do it. So I got my license.
Kate: How do you hope to use your new skills?
Laurissa: I’m a child care provider. I’ve worked in child care for about six years, and I want to help other children who are where I was know that it’s okay. We can work through it together. I want to be there for kids who struggle with the same things I do.
The Stigma is Strong
Many adults are not able to admit that they cannot read well. As one student recently summarized, she “was tired of being in a place that [she] did not want to be”. She came to Reach initially because she works with children and wants “to read to them without hesitation”. After consistently working hard during tutoring sessions, she found that it was “something to look forward to” and the best part was “seeing my growth”. The icing on the cake was that she found the confidence to attempt the drivers’ license test, and she passed!
Time slots are available. Please consider encouraging an adult in your life who struggles to read. We would love to walk with them on their learning journey!
Check out our website to learn more about Read to Succeed and all of Reach Literacy's programs!
To sign up or learn more, email program@reachliteracy.org or call 605-321-8374.