Today we’d like to introduce you to Cassie Carter.
Hi Cassie, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
In the summer of 2023, I made a simple Facebook post asking if anyone in my community was interested in summer reading support. I ended up tutoring 40 kids a week. By the end of the summer, parents were asking if I’d continue into the school year. I knew I couldn’t teach full-time and keep all my summer students, but I agreed to take on a few.
A few turned into more. Before long, I was tutoring every evening from 4:00 to 8:30. That’s when I started reaching out to friends for help. That entire school year, four of us tutored out of a tiny room I rented for $300 a month—and somehow, the kids just kept coming.
That’s when I realized: what we were doing was so needed. And so many of the students who could benefit the most from this kind of support were the ones who couldn’t afford it.
In 2018, I had been trained in Orton-Gillingham, and it had completely transformed how I taught reading. I saw firsthand what truly worked for struggling readers—and I couldn’t unsee it. I also realized that I could reach more students outside of my classroom than inside of it.
That’s when the leap of faith happened.
My teaching partner and best friend, Ashleigh, and I had dreamed for years about doing things differently. With the support of a few incredible teaching besties, we launched Letters 2 Literacy—a nonprofit that brings high-quality, science-backed reading instruction to students regardless of their family’s ability to pay.
Now, we serve over 200 kids every week—and we’re just getting started.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
It definitely hasn’t been a smooth road—most things worth doing rarely are.
Time management was one of the first and biggest challenges. I was still teaching full-time when I started tutoring in the evenings, and trying to juggle both quickly became overwhelming. I knew I had to make a choice if I wanted this to grow.
Then came the issue of space. We outgrew that tiny $300-a-month room quickly, but coming up with the money to pay for something larger was a major hurdle. When we finally made the decision to expand we had no idea how much work it would take to get it the way we wanted it. We renovated it entirely on our own—nights and weekends spent painting walls, removing tile and replacing it, and trying to make it feel warm, welcoming, and safe for our families.
There were financial struggles, too. Fundraising and forming partnerships with other organizations became essential to simply keep our doors open. And as the number of students grew, so did the demand for materials and structure. We needed a curriculum that worked, that we believed in, and that was rooted in research—so we built it ourselves.
Another challenge has been scaling. Training new tutors who align with our philosophy and are ready to meet the needs of a growing number of students has taken time and intention. But we’re committed to doing it right—because our kids deserve nothing less.
It’s been hard. But every challenge has brought us closer to what Letters 2 Literacy was meant to be
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
At Letters 2 Literacy, we provide high-quality, science-backed reading instruction to children who need it most—regardless of their family’s ability to pay. We specialize in structured literacy rooted in the Orton-Gillingham approach, which means our instruction is explicit, systematic, multisensory, and designed specifically for students who struggle with reading.
We work with children in one on one settings, tailoring lessons to meet each student exactly where they are. Our focus isn’t just on improving test scores—it’s on building confident, capable readers who feel empowered by their own progress.
What we’re known for is impact. Every single child who participates in our program shows growth. We don’t just say we believe in kids—we prove it through their success.
What sets us apart is our holistic approach. We don’t just tutor; we build relationships with families and train tutors to meet each student’s needs with care and consistency. We also have a speech and language pathologist and an occupational therapist on staff to address any additional needs our students may have. We’ve created our own curriculum based on the Science of Reading—designed by teachers, not textbooks—and every single lesson we deliver is intentional and research-informed.
I’m most proud of how far we’ve come in such a short time. From a Facebook post in 2023 to now serving over 200 students a week, we’ve created something meaningful—and we’ve done it with heart, hustle, and the belief that every child deserves access to literacy, no matter their background.
Do you have any advice for those looking to network or find a mentor?
We’re still learning all about networking, and it’s definitely been a journey! One thing that’s helped us a lot is finding other organizations that started small, just like we did. Hearing their stories, learning about their challenges and successes—it’s been incredibly valuable. These conversations have not only helped us build genuine relationships, but they’ve also taught us so much about growing with purpose.
Pricing:
- One 2 One Tutoring, speech and language therapy, occupational therapy- all 30 minute sessions $0-30
Contact Info:
- Website: https://Www.letters2literacy.info
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/share/16YSG9LB1v/?mibextid=wwXIfr
