BIRMINGHAM — United Way of Central Alabama will receive $150,000 to align the community around a plan for improving reading proficiency for Birmingham City Schools elementary students.

Mayor Randall Woodfin, Superintendent Lisa Herring, and UWCA President Drew Langloh will appear together to announce this initiative. UWCA applied for the grant using the strengths of the Bold Goals Coalition of Central Alabama and incorporating key elements from the “The Woodfin Way” transition plan and the priorities that the Birmingham City Schools have identified. This grant commences an intensive six-month effort to streamline and align all stakeholders behind one plan to improve student-centered literacy efforts.

“We know that by aligning all of the community’s resources around an actionable plan that the sky is the limit for children, not only in Birmingham, but throughout Central Alabama,” Langloh said. “The Bold Goals Coalition of Central Alabama convenes partners to make real change happen in Central Alabama, and this grant helps accelerate that change.”

The grant is an award from the Together for Students initiative, created by three national, education-focused nonprofit organizations — the Coalition for Community Schools, Communities In Schools, and StriveTogether — with support from the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative and the Ford Foundation.

Birmingham was one of just ten communities nationwide selected for this grant. Other key local partners in this grant include Birmingham Education Foundation, Norwood Resource Center, and Alabama Possible.