OUR BACKGROUND
Lit Feelings! Inc. was founded by youth development specialists, educators, interdisciplinary artists and literary enthusiasts. Our focus is on literacy, social-emotional wellbeing, and artistic expression.
OUR MISSION
Our mission is to provide meaningful and inclusive literacy exchanges that support the social-emotional well-being and academic success of all youth within the city of Chicago.
WHY WE DO IT
The National Center for Education Statistics reports that for Black, and Hispanic children, more than 80 percent in each group are not proficient readers. A long-term study by the Annie E. Casey Foundation (AECF) found that students not proficient in reading by the end of third grade were four times more likely to drop out of high school than proficient readers and are likely to experience consequences that stretch into adulthood.
Research has shown that there is a direct link between reading engagement and
reading achievement (Logan & Johnston, 2009), and textual selection can be counted as a factor behind reading underachievement in Black and Latinx youth. In other words, representation matters!
We know from a 2011 meta-analysis of 213 school-based programs that SEL instruction helps improve students’ social and emotional skills, attitudes, and behaviors as well as their academic performance. However, SEL programs have been lacking adequate culturally responsive practices and resources as it relates to the whole child.
