Turning Pages

Juvenile Literacy Program ​

In February 2024, The State Attorney’s Office launched Turning Pages, a juvenile literacy intervention program designed to help break the school-to-prison pipeline by addressing literacy challenges among at-risk youth in Orange and Osceola counties.

This crime intervention program was developed in partnership with the University of Central Florida’s Communication Disorders Clinic and Carrie Loughran, UCF clinical instructor and director of the iRead Program.

Discover How Turning Pages is Transforming Lives

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Program Overview

Turning Pages is a 12-week intensive literacy program that identifies and tackles reading, writing, spelling and comprehension issues. UCF graduate student clinicians, using research-based methods, provide one-on-one tutoring to help improve literacy skills among participating youth.

The Need for Literacy Intervention

The connection between low literacy skills and incarceration rates is well documented. According to the Literacy Project Foundation:

  • 3 out of 5 people in U.S. prisons cannot read.
  • 85% of juveniles in the justice system are functionally illiterate.
 

Recognizing this connection, Turning Pages aims to:

  • Prevent future criminal behavior by improving literacy among at-risk youth.
  • Provide youth with critical skills that are essential for both academic and personal success.
 

State Attorney Bain recognized the importance of juvenile literacy early in his administration and made it a priority to tackle the issue. His vision for the program is rooted in the belief that investing in literacy is a proactive step toward reducing recidivism and creating a brighter future for our youth.

It is incumbent on our office to help break the cycle of crime and incarceration. Investing in the literacy and education of our youth is key to preventing future crime.

― Andrew Bain, State Attorney for Ninth Judicial Circuit

Early Success and Future Expansion

The first group of students completed the program in April 2024. These early successes have laid the groundwork for future expansion, with plans to serve more youth later in the year. This initial phase demonstrated the program’s potential to make a meaningful impact on the lives of participants.

Learn more about UCF’s iRead Program.