When a Community Reads,
Children Succeed.
LINC makes literacy a value and right for all children.
LINC gives every child a strong start.
We raise generations of readers through fun programs and activities based on the science of reading. Our programming is designed for families with children five and under, including expectant parents.
Innovation. From the Start.
LINC’s approach to literacy focuses on the everyday world surrounding children—the family and the community.
We’ve always recognized parents and caregivers as children’s first teachers. And we’ve always believed in the strengths they have to help their children grow into strong, confident early readers!
All parents want the best for their children. Not all parents have the same opportunities to support their children’s early learning.
LINC works with families and partners in the community to make literacy visible and valued when it matters most: in the first five years of a child’s life.
We’re building reading routines together, and offering skills, tools, and tips that power literacy learning in little brains.
Because literacy is powerful and every child deserves the benefits it brings for lifelong success and well-being.
Our 
Impact 
in 
Numbers
After joining LINC programs…
96%
of parents read five or more days a week to their child
95%
of parents report they understand the importance of reading with their child
85%
of primary school parents report LINC helped them become more aware of their child’s reading goals
88%
of caregivers talk about the feelings of the characters in the stories they’re reading
The Bigger Picture
Literacy starts on day one of a child’s life.
90% of a child’s brain develops by age five. These early years are a crucial time for the development of foundational literacy skills.
Early literacy activities build cognitive development, social and emotional skills, trust and self-esteem, and academic readiness.
Children who develop early literacy skills have greater academic and lifelong success, including greater financial stability, better physical and mental health, and more civic engagement.
50% of children in LINC neighborhoods enter kindergarten already behind in literacy. Children who can’t read proficiently are 4x more likely to not finish high school and 6x more likely if they are of low income.
They are less likely to be stably employed as adults, and 5x more likely to have contact with the criminal justice system.
It’s estimated that low adult literacy rates cost the U.S. $2.2 trillion annually in lost productivity and income.
Low literacy is not inevitable. By reaching more children earlier in their lives and providing the adults who surround them—parents, other caregivers, and community members—with simple, evidence-based tools, we can end the literacy crisis.
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A Word From a LINC Parent
“Two years ago, she couldn’t say any words. Now she can’t stop talking! It’s amazing. I didn’t even know we could do these things… I’m very happy. I’m really enjoying this. These books, these moments, these [LINC] programs. Thank you for all that you give us.”
Beatriz Fermin
LINC Very Involved Parent, talking about her daughter
LINC in the News
Featured News
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City’s First Readers to Present Landmark Early Literacy Research at the 97th Annual Pediatric Academic Societies (PAS) Meeting
City’s First Readers (CFR), a New York City Council funded initiative comprised of 17 nonprofit organizations to foster the literacy development of children birth through five, is proud to announce that their latest research into the population-level impact of integrated early literacy programs has been selected for an oral presentation at the 97th annual Pediatric […]
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