The center will be housed at UCF’s College of Education and is made possible in part by the generosity of John and Carrie Morgridge, philanthropists with a passion for supporting reading initiatives. The Morgridge gift is the largest to UCF’s College of Education and one of the largest to a college of education in Florida.

The center’s work will:

• Collect and disseminate educational information based on research

• House a comprehensive collection of reading initiatives from around the globe

• Serve as a communication hub for stakeholders from states, countries, associations, organizations, foundations and individuals committed to reading excellence

• Provide opportunities for professional learning

Literacy Facts

• Illiteracy costs American taxpayers an estimated $20 billion a year

• 42 million adult Americans can’t read

• 50 percent of American adults can’t read an eighth-grade-level book

• 20 percent of American adults are functionally illiterate and read below a fifth-grade level

• Worldwide, approximately 500 million women are illiterate, making up two-thirds of the adult population that cannot read

• One billion children and adults, approximately 15 percent of the world’s population, lack basic literacy skills

The Buzz

We get excited about teaching and education because UCF educators’ best practices show they understand the whole child and the whole process. It isn’t simply one program for one child, but many things together that make a difference. That’s why we all have to collaborate. We are thrilled about our investment in UCF.

– Carrie and John Morgridge

This Center could make a real difference in the world. The Morgridge International Reading Center has the capacity to identify important issues, solve problems, and ultimately make a difference in literacy for adults and children.

– Gay Su Pinnell, Professor Emeritus, The Ohio State University

You are developing a unique place with a unique mission-a place rich in resources where teachers, researchers, scholars, and parents can meet and study, and a mission that reaches across continents and countries to address global literacy issues.

– Sean Walmsley, Professor, State University of New York at Albany

The Morgridge International Reading Center can truly offer solutions, not merely detailed descriptions of the problems.

– Don Deshler, Professor, University of Kansas

There is so much we could learn by looking across cultures and languages. I’m looking forward to your understanding of how children in all cultures come to be literate beings.

– Carol Vukelich, Professor, University of Delaware

The gift of reading is special. The Morgridge family has made a generous contribution to the UCF College of Education so that professionals in the college may teach this special gift to others.

– John C. Hitt, President, UCF

Under the leadership of President John Hitt and the guidance of Dean Sandra Robinson, we see a long relationship with UCF. We want to see our money spent wisely, and UCF does a great job of maximizing every penny.

– Carrie and John Morgridge

The gift is eligible to be matched by the State of Florida. But we need your help to make the center happen. Please contact us at 407-823-2140.