More than two-thirds of fourth grade students in the United States -- as many as six million children -- do not read proficiently. The 

problem is most acute for children living in poverty, children of color, English Language Learners, and children with disabilities. 

The implications are profound: Third grade marks the pivotal point when children transition from "learning to read" to "reading to learn." 

Children who cannot read by then struggle more with the increasingly complex, multidisciplinary information introduced in later grades. 

Those who read proficiently by third grade are four times more likely to graduate from high school than those who do not. 

Agrowing body of research validates what works in teaching children to read: Well-trained tutors delivering early, targeted, 

evidence-based interventions to students in need. This report describes the result of arandomized controlled trial evaluation of 

Minnesota Reading Corps, an AmeriCorps program that translates literacy research into effective practice. 

By combining the people power of AmeriCorps with proven education strategies, this evidence-based 

initiative can successfully address one of our nation's most critical priorities. 

RESEARCH BRIEF MARCH2014 
IMPACT EVALUATION OF THE MINNESOTA READING CORPS K-3 PROGRAM 

KEY FINDINGS 

This independent evaluation showed that AmeriCorps members can 

produce significantly greater increases in student literacy outcomes 

among elementary students over one semester of tutoring. 

r.1 	 The average kindergarten student with an AmeriCorps 

tutor performed twice as well as students without one. 

r.1 	 AmeriCorps tutors helped the average first grade 

student perform 26 percent better than the expected 

level for on-track students. 

r.1 	 Students with higher risk factors* who received 

AmeriCorps tutoring significantly outperformed 

students who did not. 

* such as dual language learners and students who qualify for free and 

reduced-price lunch 

r.1 	 The Minnesota Reading Corps program is replicable 

in multiple school settings using AmeriCorps 

members with varied backgrounds*. 

• gender, race, age, years ofeducation, full/part-time status, prior experience 

THE READING CORPS 

MODEL 

Minnesota Reading Corps, a strategic 

initiative of ServeMinnesota, 

demonstrates how service and science 

can accelerate improvement in both 

students and systems. By mobilizing the 

people power of AmeriCorps, Reading 

Corps provides proven literacy 

interventions and data-based 

assessments to children from age three 

to grade three. Using the latest research 

on reading intervention strategies and 

guidance from literacy experts, Reading 

Corps fixes acritical link in literacy 

acquisition. It provides what struggling 

readers need -individualized, 

data-driven instruction, one-on-one 

attention, well-trained tutors, instruction 

delivered with fidelity, and the frequency 

and duration necessary for student 

achievement. 

For teachers, regularly delivering 

individualized, one-on-one instruction 

can be difficult, if not impossible. 

Because Reading Corps tutors are 

focused solely on providing reading 

support, they can target instruction and 

dedicate the time needed for each child. 

Tutors commit to a year or more of 

AmeriCorps service, receive rigorous 

training and ongoing support throughout 

the year, and use rich data assessments 

to ensure their efforts produce the 

desired results - helping children 

achieve grade-level reading proficiency. 

ADDITIONAL FINDINGS 
 

Although the impact was smaller for third grade students, and no significant difference was found for second grade students, 

additional exploratory analyses showed that improvement for these students continued after the first semester. These 

findings support aconclusion that the program may be effective for some older students, and that more time in intervention 

may produce larger impacts. 
IMPACT EVALUATION OF THE MINNESOTA READING CORPS K-3 PROGRAM 

METHODOLOGY 

Beginning in 2011, the Corporation for National and Community 

Service (CNCS) sponsored arandomized controlled trial to 

evaluate the short- and long-term impacts of the Minnesota 

Reading Corps program on elementary students' literacy 

outcomes. 

Asample of 1,530 kindergarten through third grade students 

identified as eligible for Reading Corps services were randomly 

assigned to either the Reading Corps program or control group at 

the beginning of the first semester, prior to the start of tutoring. 

Each eligible student in each grade within aschool was matched 

with another eligible student based upon test scores. Students 

within pairs were then randomly assigned to either the program or 

control condition. 

AmeriCorps members collected grade-appropriate literacy 

outcome data from students each week for 16 weeks between 

the fall and winter semesters of the 2012-2013 school year. 

Schools eligible to participate in the evaluation had fully 

implemented the Reading Corps K-3 Program for at least two 

consecutive years. Stratified random sampling was employed to 

select schools. The study included a final sample of 23 urban, 

suburban, and rural schools. 

PROGRAM GROWTH 

Since 2003, Minnesota Reading Corps has helped more than 100,000 struggling readers progress toward proficiency by the 

end of third grade. The program has grown from serving just 250 students to reaching more than 30,000 annually- all while 

improving its effectiveness. 

With support from CNCS and matching funds from private sector and other sources, the Reading Corps program has expanded 

to seven states and the District of Columbia. Altogether, an estimated 1,270 AmeriCorps members are serving students 

nationwide using the Reading Corps model. 

AMERICORPS AND EDUCATION 

CNCS invests more than half of all AmeriCorps grant dollars in 

education, bringing tens of thousands of caring adults to schools 

across the country. AmeriCorps members provide teaching, tutoring, 

mentoring, afterschool support, and other services to students in 

more than 10,000 public schools, including one in three 

persistently low-achieving schools. 
IMPACT EVALUATION OF THE MINNESOTA READING CORPS K-3 PROGRAM 

"The Minnesota Reading Corps has been a key partner in our efforts to ensure all students are 

reading well by third grade. This new data confirms that strong early learning supports and 

interventions get great results for kids, and set them on a path for continued academic success." 

-- Dr. Brenda Cassellius, Commissioner, Minnesota Department of Education 

RESEARCH COMPONENTS 

Fundedby CNCS, researchers from NORC 

at the University of Chicago conducted the 

following studies: 

- Feasibility study 

- Process assessment 

- Quasi-experimental evaluation of the 

pre-kindergarten program 

- Survey of AmeriCorps members 

- Impact evaluation of the kindergarten 

through third grade (K-3) program 

COMPLEMENTARY STUDIES 
 

Each year, evaluations of Reading Corps show that thousands of 

at-risk students reach critical milestones. ServeMinnesota invested 

in a five-year quasi-experimental study of preschool participants which 

demonstrated that Reading Corps participants outperformed their 

peers on validated assessments that predict school readiness. 

Further, research conducted by the Center for Learning Solutions 

(2012) has shown that Reading Corps participants are three times 

less likely to be assigned to special education than 

non-participants, creating apermanent benefit to children and a 

significant ongoing savings to schools that can be redirected back 

into the classroom for the benefit of all children. 

1ng corps 

Astrategic initiative 

afServeMinnesota 

This report is in the public domain. Authorization to reproduce it in whole or in part is granted. Upon request, this material will be 

made available in alternative formats for people with disabilities. 

Full report and methodology: nationalservice.gov/research 

The mission of the Corporation for National and Community Service (CNCS) is to improve lives, strengthen communities, and 

foster civic engagement through service and volunteering. 

RESEARCH BRIEF MARCH 2014