Lauren Hagan is the CEO of Columbus Metropolitan Library in Columbus, Ohio.
The same week an article in The Atlantic questioned whether society had reached the end of the"age of reading,"thousands of book lovers gathered at the Columbus Book Festival to celebrate and meet their favorite authors.
People from as far as California devoted an entire weekend to reading, discovering new stories and filling tote bags with books.
In"The End of Reading Is Here," Atlantic writer Rose Horowitchcites data showing Americans whoread for pleasure have fallen by roughly half since 2004. This statistic should be taken seriously. But it only describes a symptom, not a diagnosis.
Perhaps the question posed in the article is wrong: What if it’s not about the end of
reading as we know it? What if the question is: Who creates readers?
Making readers
Yes, screens compete for every spare moment of our lives. Teachers see it in their classrooms, and parents see it at home. Many people don’t read books the way they used to. These are today’s realities.
But readers are not created by algorithms. They are created by adults who read to children, teachers who teach them, librarians who encourage them, and communities that make literacy a shared priority.
Literacy is not inevitable. Every generation must decide that literacy matters and invest in the people and institutions that make it possible. Schools play a central role, but they have never done it alone. Families, community organizations, libraries – each is part of the literacy ecosystem.
It's why this moment feels more like opportunity.
At Columbus Metropolitan Library, we continue to see that people want stories. They want an opportunity to learn, no matter their age. Parents bring little ones to Storytime, more than 42,000 Columbus City Schools students have library access through their student ID, which opens the door to books after the bell rings, and adults download audiobooks for everyday life.
The desire hasn't disappeared. The challenge is helping people become confident readers in the first place.
Across the country, many states have embraced the science of reading,a research-backed philosophy that has reshaped reading instruction in classrooms. Ohio law requires schools to focus on evidence-based approaches that emphasize phonemic awareness, phonics, vocabulary, fluency and comprehension.
At Columbus Metropolitan Library, we began this work before it became law.
Many of ourearly literacy programs, including Storytime, Ready for Kindergarten, and Play to Learn, already aligned with the science of reading principles, helping children build skills like vocabulary, letter recognition and phonological awareness.
But early on, we recognized the need to do more for emerging readers. Children who struggle to read are less likely to become people who love to read.
A culture that values reading
In recent years, Columbus Metropolitan Library has expanded its use of decodable books, invested in staff training around evidence-based literacy practices, and redesigned programs to reinforce the foundational skills children are learning in school.
Our Reading Buddies program, which pairs a child with adult volunteers for reading practice, now incorporates key principles of structured literacy while giving children opportunities to practice in an inclusive, supportive environment.
Our work has extended beyond our own library system. We’ve helped lead statewide efforts with other Ohio libraries to explore how public libraries can support the Science of Reading through staff training, parent education, and school partnerships.
Libraries occupy a unique place in the literacy ecosystem.
Think about it.
A child may attend Storytime years before they step into a classroom. A caregiver may learn simple ways to build language skills at home. A struggling reader may discover books that build confidence rather than frustration. A teen may discover an author who inspires a lifelong love of reading or who introduces them to a new interest or hobby. Adults may return to books after a few years away.
No single moment solves the challenges described in The Atlantic. Instead, the accumulation of these moments creates readers. This summer, we saw firsthand what that adds up to in our annual Summer Reading Challenge – a 7% growth over last year, surpassing registration numbers from the last decade.
Technology will change, and so will our consumption of it. Print books, e-books and audiobooks all play a role.
The future of reading will not be decided by technology alone, but by communities willing to invest in the institutions that make literacy possible.
A healthy literacy ecosystem depends on libraries working alongside schools, families, educators, and community organizations. Together, we can ensure the next generation does more than learn how to read. We can help them discover why reading is worth making time for in the first place.
If we believe literacy matters, we can't just talk about it. We must create a culture that values reading, celebrates it, and makes it accessible to everyone. That’s how the next generation will be built to read.
Lauren Hagan is the CEO of Columbus Metropolitan Library in Columbus, Ohio.
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: They say reading is going way of dinosaurs. Columbus is proving them wrong | Opinion
