State investment supports Pre-K literacy implementation, expanding access to Science of Reading-aligned early literacy instruction for Arkansas’s youngest learners
Really Great Reading (RGR) today announced that the Arkansas Department of Education (ADE), Office of Early Childhood, has awarded RGR funding of up to $343,000 for Early Childhood Professional Services related to its Pre-Kindergarten program. The investment will support RGR’s expansion to serve Pre-K educators across Arkansas, strengthening foundational literacy instruction for thousands of students.
RGR’s evidence-based early literacy program is play-based and interactive, building letter recognition, phonological awareness, and print concepts through multisensory, developmentally appropriate instruction. RGR’s Pre-K program has been a key component of Arkansas’s Pre-K R.I.S.E. (Reading Initiative for Student Excellence) Initiative since Phase I, serving as a supplementary foundational literacy curriculum aligned to the Arkansas Child Development and Early Learning Standards.
Following a thorough review of applications submitted through the ADE’s Call for Proposals process, RGR was selected to deliver coaching, training, and technical assistance that build educators’ early literacy instruction grounded in the Science of Reading.
“Arkansas is yet another Southern State surging forward to change literacy rates, partnering with RGR,” said Karl Rectanus, CEO of RGR. “This investment reflects the state’s recognition that the best path to reading proficiency begins before kindergarten, and their commitment to ensuring early childhood educators have the tools and support to build strong literacy foundations from day one.”
This award builds on a longstanding partnership between RGR and the State of Arkansas and will cover the period from July 1, 2026, through June 30, 2027, with funds provided on a reimbursable basis. Through the Pre-K R.I.S.E. Initiative, the ADE has provided RGR’s Early Literacy curriculum and implementation training to Pre-K programs across the state.
Arkansas continues to invest in its early childhood system as part of broader efforts under the LEARNS Act and with support from federal Preschool Development Grant funding. The ADE’s Office of Early Childhood oversees professional development contracts designed to improve the quality of care and instruction for all children statewide.
