The Challenge

Early reading skills are one of the strongest predictors of long-term academic success, yet too many children face barriers to getting the support they need early. Families often want to help but may not know what to look for, when to raise concerns, or how to navigate conversations with schools. These challenges are compounded for families who are navigating language barriers, economic stress, or limited access to trusted information.

At the same time, Colorado’s school districts are deeply diverse. Districts vary widely in size, capacity, culture, and community context. A single, one-size-fits-all campaign risked being either too generic to be useful or too specific to work statewide. CDE needed communications that could elevate the importance of early reading and spotting reading challenges, while also delivering assets that districts and community partners could actually use across very different local environments.

The challenge was to create a campaign that built shared understanding statewide while still feeling local, relevant, and supportive to diverse families.

Our Approach

SE2 partnered with the Colorado Department of Education to develop Read, Learn, Lead — a bilingual, culturally relevant awareness campaign designed to strengthen the partnership between families and schools and support children’s reading success from the very beginning.

From the start, the campaign was built to be flexible and place-based. SE2 developed a clear campaign strategy, core messages, and a distinct visual brand supported by a library of custom illustrations. These assets were designed to be adaptable so districts, educators, libraries, and community organizations could deploy them in ways that made sense locally while maintaining consistency statewide.

To reach families beyond traditional school communications, the campaign relied heavily on place-based media, social, and texting. Printed materials were distributed in 173 trusted community locations across Colorado, including child care centers, clinics, grocery and convenience stores, libraries, and community centers. This ensured families encountered messages about early reading in the places they already visit as part of daily life.

Digital outreach complemented this work. A six-week paid media campaign delivered bilingual digital, radio, and social content, with a strong focus on Spanish-speaking families, rural communities, and economically disadvantaged households. Text messaging through Lantern allowed the campaign to deliver short, timely prompts that encouraged families to talk with teachers and seek support early. Messaging emphasized that reading challenges are common, support is available, and early conversations can make a lasting difference.

Throughout the campaign, SE2 prioritized plain language, affirming tone, and practical guidance. The goal was not to alarm families, but to empower them with information, normalize early reading challenges, and reinforce that families and educators are partners in building a strong foundation for lifelong learning.

The Impact

Read, Learn, Lead achieved broad reach and strong engagement across channels, with particularly meaningful results among Spanish-speaking families and communities that are often harder to reach through traditional education communications .
Key outcomes include:

More than 11 million total impressions statewide delivered in just six weeks, demonstrating strong visibility and scale.
Nearly 9,000 website visits, with 76 percent of traffic directed to the Spanish-language site, highlighting deep engagement among Spanish-speaking families.
173 community-based locations activated through place-based media, generating an estimated 9 million impressions in trusted, everyday settings.
High-performing social and digital placements, with click-through rates ranging from 0.06 percent to 3 percent and Instagram engagement rates reaching up to 18 percent, significantly outperforming Facebook.
Text messaging outreach to more than 87,000 families, with some messages achieving click-through rates above 1.4 percent, reinforcing the effectiveness of timely, direct prompts.

Together, these results show that Read, Learn, Lead succeeded in reaching diverse families, delivering useful and adaptable tools to districts and community partners, and elevating early reading as a shared priority. By meeting families where they are and emphasizing early action, the campaign helped lay a stronger foundation for children’s reading success and lifelong learning.