Who We Are
Raising Readers is part of growing up in Maine. For more than 20 years, Raising Readers and every pediatric healthcare provider across the state has been promoting a love of books and reading to all children in Maine.
When a baby is born at a hospital or at home, their families are given a tote of books to start their home libraries. More books are given at each well-child visit from 2 months to 5 years. By the time a Maine child starts school, they will have a library of brand new books to call their very own.
Maine ranks in the top 5 U.S. states where parents read most often to their children!*
*Source: National Study of Children’s Health, 2018-2019.
Raising Readers highlights
- We have distributed more than 3 million books since 2000. More than 300,000 Maine children have their own home libraries.
- We support every baby born in Maine and all children receiving well-child care in Maine.
- We partner with every hospital, midwifery, and primary health care provider in Maine.
- Raising Readers is the largest health and literacy project ever undertaken by any one state.
By incorporating books and early literacy skills into the healthcare setting at birth and well-child visits, Raising Readers supports the well-documented links between brain development, literacy and overall health while encouraging families to read to children.
Raising Readers is funded by the Libra Foundation, supported by the Barbara Bush Children’s Hospital, and administered by MaineHealth and Northern Light Health.