KANSAS CITY, Mo. (KCTV) – A Kansas City middle school English teacher has raised more than $3,000 through a community partnership to build classroom libraries and improve reading comprehension.
Chris Leavens, who teaches at Guadalupe Centers Middle School, helped create the “Aztecs Read” program a few years ago after recognizing his school lacked a library. The initiative recently partnered with Kansas City bookstore Rainy Day Books, which donated $2,000 to the effort.
“The last update I got we had about thirty-thousand five hundred and seventy dollars, book buck dollars in donations,” Leavens said. “I was like, ‘This is a game changer.’”
The National Literacy Institute reports illiteracy costs American taxpayers an estimated $20 billion each year, or $130 per tax filer. Robin Henderson, chief program officer of School Smart KC, said about 290,000 adults in Kansas City struggle with low literacy.
“Our students are not leaving third grade at or above third grade level,” Henderson said.
Leavens said interest in independent reading has declined, creating broader community impacts.
“Interest in reading, specifically reading independently, has been on the decline,” he said. “It’s an astounding number.”
Henderson said literacy affects multiple aspects of community life.
“It’s connected to everything, right? It’s a health issue. It’s a community safety issue. Literacy is foundational to everything,” she said.
Leavens said his own reading struggles in middle school inform his approach to student choice in book selection.
“I remember when I was growing up in middle school, I hated reading. I got in shouting matches with my dad about ‘Where the Red Fern Grows’ because I didn’t want to read it,” he said.
His perspective changed when he chose his own book.
“I picked up Friday Night Lights by H.G. Bissinger and it lit a fire under me for reading,” Leavens said. “Kids need to have choice over the books that they read,” he said.
Guadalupe Centers Middle School faces challenges common to urban schools, including limited space and personnel for traditional library services.
“Space is one thing. Personnel is another thing,” Leavens said.
Leavens said his father, who died in 2019, influenced his commitment to educational investment.
“He valued education so much and he valued reading. He always believed in making investments. You always invest in things appreciate, that are gonna grow,” Leavens said.
Henderson said community support demonstrates broader investment in student success.
“I’m happy to see that our community is wrapping its arms around one of our schools,” she said. “Literacy is not just a school issue. It’s an everyone issue.”
The donation collection runs through Feb. 1 through Rainy Day Books.
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