Macy’s and RIF: 20 years of partnership, a lifetime of impact

Two Decades. Over 15 Million Books.

This year marks 20 years of Macy’s partnering with Reading Is Fundamental (RIF) to empower youth through literacy, bringing over 15 million books and literacy resources to children across the country. While achieving this milestone is undeniably impressive, more than anything, it demonstrates Macy’s unwavering commitment to advocating for and advancing children’s literacy. Throughout the last two decades, Macy’s has helped to raise over $45 million for RIF’s mission and worked closely with RIF to make sure that millions of children in the U.S. have the opportunity to experience the joy of reading, putting them on a path to reading proficiency and ensuring their opportunity to learn, grow, and achieve their full potential. That’s why I’m honored to share that today, we’re launching our 2023 campaign as Macy’s literacy partner for their social purpose campaign called Macy’s Mission Every One, that will enable us to reach even more children with the books and reading support they need at such a critical point in our nation’s education landscape.

The latest National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) scores confirm a grim reality – there is a significant children’s literacy crisis in the United States. Results show a return to 30-year lows due not only to the pandemic, but historic inequities that continue to plague us. There are 25 million children in this country who are not reading proficiently, and this is why it is more important than ever to address this problem together. Macy’s knows that through reading, any dream can turn into reality for our nation’s children, and I am honored that RIF has such a devoted partner in our shared mission to confront this issue and create solutions to empower young readers in the U.S.

Throughout the month of July, shoppers can support the cause and make a difference. Customers around the country will have the chance to round up in-store or donate online, and every penny will aid the RIF mission of creating a nation of lifelong readers. Macy’s is passionate about the communities where their employees and customers live and work, being steadfast in their commitment to working with RIF to take on closing the youth literacy gap, and we invite you to support us all month long.

I speak for everyone at RIF when I say we are so thankful to every Macy’s colleague, shopper, and book lover. With your help, we can build a culture of literacy that will kindle children’s reading joy, further driving educational success.

On behalf of Reading Is Fundamental and the millions of children we serve, I encourage you to visit your local Macy’s store or go to Macy’s website to find out more on how to join us in tackling the literacy gap.

-Alicia Levi
President & CEO