Milwaukee leaders unite to tackle city's literacy crisis with new coalition

MILWAUKEE — For years, Milwaukee has struggled with low reading scores that consistently trail state and national averages. Now, a coalition of leaders is coming together to form a citywide plan to tackle those challenges through unprecedented collaboration and financial incentives for educators.

The Milwaukee Reading Coalition brought together educators, advocates and civic leaders at Mount Mary University to launch a first-of-its-kind partnership that cuts across public, private and charter schools, all focused on one mission: improving literacy and supporting teachers.

"We have a significant challenge. It's not easy to teach teachers to teach kids to read," said Maya Smart, author and literacy advocate.

The coalition's ambitious plan includes raising both public and private funding t