CHAMPAIGN COUNTY, Ill. (WAND) — The United Way of Champaign County has launched a new literacy initiative aimed at meeting kids where they already feel comfortable.
The program, called Books with Barbers, has rolled out at A Cut Above Barbery Academy, led by barber Carlos Harvey, and Groom Culture, led by barber Malik Dillard. Each shop is stocked with books to make reading a natural part of every visit.
Chief Impact Officer at United Way of Champaign County, Bev Baker, said the program is modeled after a successful national effort known as Barbershop Books and was adapted to meet local needs.
“This program, Books with Barbers, is based on a national model… and we took a look at what we could do here locally to implement it,” Baker said.
Champaign Rotary, Books from Brek, United Wa,y and a couple of local barbershops teamed up to bring books to these spaces. Baker said the goal is so kids can be further exposed to literacy.
Baker added that barbershops were chosen intentionally, based on both local and national data showing African-American boys are struggling in reading and language arts. The United Way said that nationally, 82 percent of Black male fourth graders are not proficient in reading. Locally, 8.7 percent of Black third graders in Champaign Unit 4 and 1.7 percent in Urbana School District 116 meet grade-level reading standards.
“When we look at our national and local data, our African-American boys are really not performing well in terms of reading,” Baker said. “So, trying to identify ways that we can help them be exposed to good quality literature, be read to, see other people readin,g and learn to view themselves as readers can all help build their confidence.”
One of the participating barbers, Cee ThaBarber, said getting involved was an easy decision because of the close relationships barbers already have with kids and families.
“We love helping out the community,” Cee ThaBarber said. “We love being able to be a branch and a pillar of the community, and being able to give back and being able to read to the kids, and they read to us.”
Historically, at Groom Culture, kids have looked up to their barbers, and seeing them read can be a powerful motivation. The hope is that the kids take that confidence home and back to the classroom.
“It starts in the barbershop,” Cee ThaBarber said. “We have more of a connection with the kids. They like to talk to us. We’re like therapists. So with them being comfortable with us, I know they’ll be comfortable at home and at school, being able to read.”
Baker said the pilot currently includes just the two barbershops in Champaign County, but leaders hope to grow the program. The future goals include bringing the program to more shops, offering more support and training for barbers, hosting community events, and continuing to grow the selection of books.
United Way said many families still have limited access to quality books at home, and leaders hope Books with Barbers will help change that by making reading visible, accessible, and encouraged in everyday spaces.
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