Kids Read Now
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2010
- HeadquartersTroy, United States
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
Kids Read Now firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Kids Read Now
- Legal name
- Kids Read Now, Inc.
- Website
- https://kidsreadnow.org
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2010
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Kids Read Now industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Literacy Education Services
- NAICS
- Educational Support Services (611710), Educational Services (611), Educational Support Services (6117)
- SIC
- Services-Educational Services (8200)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Early Literacy & Reading Intervention Programs (EDAGAAAD)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Literacy & Reading Intervention Technology (EDAJAMAF), Literacy & Numeracy Intervention (Reading/Math Support) (EDAJALAD), K–12 Remedial Reading & Literacy Intervention (EDANAJAA), Digital Reading Content & eBooks (Leveled Readers, Libraries) (EDAFACAH)
Keywords
Where Kids Read Now is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Troy
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
Kids Read Now business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Supply Chain, Operations, Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D
Revenue model
- School/District Program Fees: Schools and districts pay per-student fees to implement the Kids Read Now summer and year-round reading programs. The program serves all students in grades K-5 at approximately $55 per student, making it highly cost-effective compared to traditional summer programs costing $1,500-$3,000 per student.
- Individual Donations: Individual donors contribute to the 501(c)(3) nonprofit to support program delivery to students. Donations are tax-deductible.
- Corporate/Foundation Grants: Corporate and foundation funding supports program expansion and helps bring the program to students across America.
- Federal/State Title Funding: Schools utilize Title I-VII, IDEA, McKinney-Vento, and ESSER funds to cover program costs, with the program qualifying as an evidence-based intervention under ESSA Tier II.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Unit Pricing | Multi-year contract | Comprehensive Summer Reading Program - Approximately $55 per student |
| Unit Pricing | Multi-year contract | LitKit Book Bags - Alternative Product Option |
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels6 records
Marketing channels9 records
Kids Read Now product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Kids Read Now delivers an evidence-based In-Home Reading Program that mails selected children's books directly to PreK-5 students' homes throughout summer, fall, or winter breaks to prevent summer reading slide. The comprehensive program is sold to school districts at approximately $55 per student, includes the KRN2GO mobile app for e-books and reading tracking, Parent and Educator web portals for monitoring progress, and Discovery Sheets with comprehension activities in over 150 languages.
Product overview
Kids Read Now is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit offering an evidence-based in-home reading program for PreK-5 students to prevent summer reading slide. The core product is the Comprehensive In-Home Summer Reading Program, which delivers books directly to students' homes along with the KRN2GO mobile app for e-books and progress tracking. Supporting this are web-based portals for parents (Parent Portal) and educators (Educator Portal), a Data Portal for analytics, Discovery Sheets comprehension activities in 150+ languages, the Wish List book catalog (150+ titles), Discover More supplementary resources, and MyStories creative writing activities. Schools can also purchase the LitKit (book bags without data tracking) as an alternative. Resource offerings include Teacher Guide, Parent Guide, Grant & Funding Guide, Family Reading Event Planning Guide, Community Buy-In Guide, and evidence-based research white papers. The company also operates a Training Site for coordinator and teacher onboarding.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- KRN2GO: Mobile app for the Kids Read Now summer comprehensive program, providing access to e-books, reading activities, book reporting, and personalized student tracking.
Products and services
- In-Home Summer Reading Program (Comprehensive Program) An in-home book delivery program for PreK-5 students that mails selected books directly to students' homes throughout summer, fall, or winter breaks to prevent summer reading slide and build literacy skills. Sold to school districts at approximately $55 per student.
- LitKit Book Bags A book bag version of the reading program for schools that purchase physical book sets rather than the mail-delivery comprehensive program. Does not include student data collection or portal access.
- KRN2GO Mobile App A smartphone app for students and families to access e-books, track reading progress, report books via QR code, earn badges and points, and engage with Discovery Questions. Supports multiple students per family with single login; available on iOS and Android.
- Parent Portal Online portal for parents and guardians to verify student information, select books, report reading progress, and track student achievement throughout the program.
- Educator Portal Web-based portal for educators to track student progress, view analytics, manage enrollment, and access program data and reporting dashboards.
- Data Portal Data analytics platform allowing educators and districts to monitor student reading progress in real time, compare student cohorts, filter by district/school/grade/teacher/student, and download customized CSV reports for further analysis.
- Wish List Book Catalog Curated catalog of 150+ children's literature titles spanning grades K-5 including Fiction, Non-Fiction, bilingual, multicultural, series, award-winning, and student-favorite books with AR and Lexile levels.
Quantifiable outcome
- 2-4 months of learning growth equivalent per summer (20-28% of a full school year)
- +6 more outcomes
Companies that use Kids Read Now
Customer profileNamed customers12 records
Segments3 records
Ideal customer profiles2 records
Kids Read Now technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature5 records
Kids Read Now partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Six partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.
- CML InsightcoreIndependent analytics firm that conducted a comprehensive multi-year data analysis of the Kids Read Now program using their state-of-the-art Causal AI tool. Analyzed reading score data for nearly 7,000 Ohio and Michigan students across 2018-19, 2020-21, and 2021-22 school years, including pre-, during-, and post-COVID pandemic periods.
- University of Wisconsin-MadisoncoreConducted independent research study led by Dr. Geoffrey D. Borman on the effectiveness of the Kids Read Now summer reading program. Study found statistically significant impacts on reading achievement for participating students across grades 1-4.
- Arizona State UniversitycoreConducted second independent research study led by Dr. Geoffrey D. Borman that validated results from the first study and concluded that Kids Read Now's program results are replicable. Dr. Borman is Foundation Professor of Quantitative Methods and Education Policy at ASU Mary Lou Fulton Teachers College.
- University of Dayton Business Research GroupminorConducted analysis of reading score data demonstrating significant improvements for Kids Read Now students, especially in high-poverty populations. Dr. Richard Stock leads this research group.
- 21st Century Community Learning Centers (21st CCLC)coreKids Read Now partners with 21st Century Grant Sites to support students during out-of-school time. This partnership combines proven reading resources with teacher training to help more children become confident readers, extending the program's reach into community-based settings.
- Soothsayer AnalyticsminorOne of two nationally renowned research firms that have independently evaluated the Kids Read Now literacy program, contributing to the body of evidence demonstrating program effectiveness.
Scale indicators7 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights6 records
Kids Read Now competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Reading Is Fundamental (RIF): Long-established 501(c)(3) nonprofit providing free books and literacy resources to K-5 students through school and community partnerships. Operates a national direct-to-child book distribution model very similar to Kids Read Now's approach, although historically more event-based than mail-based.
- First Book: National nonprofit that distributes low-cost books and educational resources to classrooms, schools, and programs serving children in need. Competes for district program budgets and donor dollars in the same K-5 literacy funding pool that Kids Read Now targets.
- Dolly Parton's Imagination Library: High-profile nonprofit that mails free, age-appropriate books monthly to children from birth to age 5 via local affiliate partnerships. Closely comparable direct-mail book distribution model to Kids Read Now, with similar funding mix of local affiliates, donors, and foundations.
- BookSpring (a program of BookSpring): Nonprofit organization focused on building literacy in young children through book distributions, family engagement, and educator support. Targets similar PreK-5 audiences and competes for the same donor and district constituencies.
- Learning Ally: 501(c)(3) that provides audiobooks and literacy resources to students with reading barriers including dyslexia. Overlaps with Kids Read Now in serving struggling K-5 readers and competing for the same Title/IDEA-funded budget lines in districts.
- Heart of America Foundation: Nonprofit organization providing books, learning resources, and school makeovers to under-resourced schools across the U.S. Operates a similar donor-supported, partnership-based model for placing resources in K-5 schools, and competes for corporate/funder attention in the early-literacy space.
Broad incumbents
- Renaissance Learning (myON): Established education technology company with myON digital reading platform and Star Assessments, serving K-12 schools nationwide. Represents a broader, well-funded incumbent competing for district literacy dollars and ESSA-aligned interventions.
- Scholastic Education: Diversified children's publisher and education provider (Scholastic Book Clubs, Scholastic EDGE, summer reading programs). Competes with Kids Read Now in summer reading intervention procurement and book-distribution partnerships through U.S. schools.
Emerging players
- Footsteps2Brilliance: EdTech platform providing digital books and literacy content for PreK-3 students, with multilingual support. Competes in the same ESSA-aligned, Title-funded digital reading intervention category as Kids Read Now's KRN2GO app, but is digital-first rather than mail-driven.
- Waterford.org (Waterford Upstart): Nonprofit delivering early literacy software and parent-coaching programs targeted at PreK-3, including summer readiness programs. Competes for the same Title-funded summer intervention budgets in districts seeking ESSA-aligned literacy programs.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat6 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Kids Read Now social profiles
Digital presenceKids Read Now financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Kids Read Now leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles2 records
Kids Read Now funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds1 record
Investors1 record
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Kids Read Now M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Kids Read Now
What does Kids Read Now do?
Kids Read Now delivers an evidence-based In-Home Reading Program that mails selected children's books directly to PreK-5 students' homes throughout summer, fall, or winter breaks to prevent summer reading slide. The comprehensive program is sold to school districts at approximately $55 per student, includes the KRN2GO mobile app for e-books and reading tracking, Parent and Educator web portals for monitoring progress, and Discovery Sheets with comprehension activities in over 150 languages.
Is Kids Read Now a public or private company?
Kids Read Now is a private company. It is classified as nonprofit foundation owned and is currently operating.
When was Kids Read Now founded?
Kids Read Now was founded in 2010. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Kids Read Now based?
Kids Read Now is headquartered in Troy, United States, in the North America region.
How does Kids Read Now make money?
Four revenue lines are on record. School/District Program Fees are the primary driver. The others are individual Donations, corporate/Foundation Grants and federal/State Title Funding.
Who are Kids Read Now's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Reading Is Fundamental (RIF), First Book, Dolly Parton's Imagination Library, BookSpring (a program of BookSpring), Learning Ally and Heart of America Foundation. Broad incumbents are Renaissance Learning (myON) and Scholastic Education. Emerging players are Footsteps2Brilliance and Waterford.org (Waterford Upstart).
Does Kids Read Now have an API?
No public API is recorded for Kids Read Now.
What industry is Kids Read Now in?
Kids Read Now's product category is Literacy Education Services. Its primary akta.pro industry code is EDAGAAAD, Early Literacy & Reading Intervention Programs, with a secondary code of EDAJAMAF, Literacy & Reading Intervention Technology. Its NAICS code is 611710 and its SIC code is 8200.