LANSING, MI (AP)-- A report by a private foundation says 81 percent of Michigan's lower-income fourth-graders and 69 percent of all kids aren't reading proficiently.
The finding was part of a Kids Count data snapshot released Tuesday by the Annie E. Casey Foundation.
The report titled "Early Reading Proficiency in the United States" says Michigan is one of six states that didn't make progress in reading over the last decade.
Jane Zehnder-Merrell of the Michigan League for Public Policy said in a statement that the findings are "truly alarming."
The report also says that 81 percent of Michigan children from low-income families are not reading at a proficient level compared with 56 percent from higher-income families. Nationally, the gap has grown while Michigan's has remained the same.
