The National Literacy Institute has declared a state of crisis as 40% of students across the country fail to read at a basic level. Here in The Peach State, this issue persists, with only 34% of Georgia’s children reaching reading proficiency at the start of the fourth grade.

With research showing that indicators of high school dropouts can be spotted as early as third grade, Newsource reporter Meghan Pastino takes a deep dive into one state initiative that seeks to keep their youth in schools and in the books.