Usha Vance takes child literacy push to Arkansas classrooms with Governor Sanders

Washington, October 21 (IANS) Second Lady Usha Vance took her campaign for childhood literacy to Arkansas, touring classrooms at an elementary school, reading to students and honouring teachers alongside Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders.The Indian-American Second Lady and Sanders visited Glenview Elementary School in North Little Rock, where they toured several classrooms and observed the school’s efforts to improve childhood literacy, the governor’s office said in a statement.They then hosted a roundtable with state education leaders, and Vance read aloud to an all-school assembly.“I want to thank Governor Sanders for her leadership and welcoming me to Arkansas. Today I saw the progress that is possible when a state and school community commit to achieving excellence,” Vance said.“These efforts reflect an important truth: children make progress when the adults around them work together. I look forward to continuing to work with Arkansas educators and families to strengthen literacy, support our teachers, and ensure every child has the opportunity to reach their full potential,” she said.In the afternoon, the two leaders met privately to review the progress Arkansas has made in strengthening childhood literacy and the work that still lies ahead. They later hosted a reception at the Arkansas Governor’s Mansion in Little Rock for fifty educators who had earned bonuses under the state’s Merit Teacher Incentive Fund.“Since becoming Second Lady, Mrs. Vance has used her platform to emphasize the importance of literacy in a child’s development, and I am incredibly grateful for her dedication because we know that the ability to read is a critical benchmark that determines future educational success,” Sanders said.According to the governor’s office, the share of third-grade students proficient in reading in Arkansas rose from 35 per cent in 2024 to 43 per cent in 2026.The merit pay programme has awarded more than $50 million to over 12,000 educators statewide over the last three years, the statement said.Vance, the daughter of Indian immigrants, became the first Indian-American Second Lady of the United States when her husband, JD Vance, assumed office as Vice President in January 2025.A lawyer by training, she has made child literacy a centrepiece of her public agenda. She launched a Summer Reading Challenge that encourages students from kindergarten through eighth grade to read 12 books during the summer break.This year’s challenge drew readers from all 50 states, Washington DC and four territories, with participation more than doubling from the previous summer, the governor’s office said.