Three out of four Salem-Keizer third graders can't read at grade level. This summer, the district is spending $1 million in state funding to change that, one word at a time.
At the district's elementary summer school on Monday, July 27, veteran teacher Stacey Evans leaned in close as a student struggled with the word "thunderstorms."
"Can you break it apart into words that you do know?" Evans asked, coaching the child through a phonics-based decoding strategy, Salem Reporter reported.
Evans, who has taught in Salem-Keizer for roughly 30 years, was guiding third graders through a reading passage about hurricane paths. The scene captures the district's broader bet: that intensive, evidence-based summer instruction can begin closing a gap that has persisted since the pandemic.
The numbers behind the push
Salem-Keizer's third-grade English language arts proficiency stands at 25.4%, according to the district's own progress report. That figure represents the first improvement in three years, but it still means roughly three in four students in Oregon's second-largest district enter fourth grade unable to read at the expected level.
The district tested 95.3% of its students in English assessments during the 2024-25 school year, well above the 89.2% statewide participation rate, as Cherry City Chronicle previously reported. The low scores aren't hidden by opt-outs.
At a Feb. 5 town hall at the Elsinore Theatre, attended by about 200 community members, Superintendent Andrea Castañeda acknowledged the problem was systemic.
The district's approach to teaching reading "has not adequately supported teachers in the task we asked of them and it has drifted from evidence-based practices that we know work," Castañeda said at the event, as Salem Reporter reported.
State investment fueling local classrooms
The $1 million backing Salem-Keizer's summer reading program comes from Oregon's statewide investment in summer learning. The Legislature made $35 million per year in summer school funding permanent in 2025, and results from last summer showed 77% of participating schools reported students maintained or improved reading skills, according to the Oregon Capital Chronicle.
Gov. Tina Kotek signaled more support is coming. At a July 14 press conference in Portland, she said her forthcoming 2027-29 budget "will be prioritizing education and particularly summer investments again because we know it works," according to the Columbia County Spotlight.
Salem-Keizer's 2026-27 adopted budget of $1.12 billion includes strategic investments in early literacy even as the district absorbs cuts elsewhere. The district's "Climbing Together" strategic plan for 2025-27 lists third-grade literacy as a top priority and calls for adopting new high-quality literacy curricula by 2027.
How families can get involved
The summer enrichment program serves students in kindergarten through third grade at Title I-A elementary schools. Parents can contact their child's school for enrollment details, according to the district's summer programs page.
Salem-Keizer is also offering free summer meals for children ages 1-18 at 10 school sites through Aug. 28, Monday through Friday from 12:30 to 1:30 p.m. Sites include Battle Creek Elementary, Four Corners Elementary, Lamb Elementary and South Salem High School. No school ID is required.
