What if the literacy crisis reveals something deeper than reading instruction alone?

In this reflective stand-alone episode, Jesica Glover sits down with David Boulton — creator of Children of the Code — to explore learning, shame, literacy, identity, and the systems surrounding children.

Together, they discuss:

• flatlined literacy outcomes
• learning shame
• generational impact
• inequity and access
• the emotional consequences of struggling to read
• and whether education systems may still be missing something fundamental about how human beings learn.

This conversation follows our Season 4 investigation into literacy, responsibility, and systemic reform.

Some ideas presented in this episode are unconventional and debated. This episode is intended as an exploration and reflection — not an endorsement of every conclusion discussed.

Be watching for our Season 5: Voices launch in late August 2026.

• Children of the Code heartbeat
• Children of the Code: Learning Shame
• Children of the Code: What’s at Stake
• What the Words Say by Emily Hanford
• National Assessment of Educational Progress

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This podcast is produced by KB PODCASTS

What happens after awareness?

One month after concluding Season 4 of My Child Can’t Read: A Heartland Crisis, Jesica Glover sits down with investigative journalist Emily Hanford for a thoughtful conversation about what comes next in the national literacy conversation—and what that means for Kansas.

Together, they explore:

• Why reading reform is so difficult inside large systems
• The ongoing gaps in teacher preparation
• Why quick fixes rarely create lasting change
• What states like Mississippi can teach the rest of the country
• The role of parents in shaping literacy reform
• Why humility, alignment, and sustained effort matter
• What still concerns Emily most about the literacy crisis

This episode is not a recap of Sold a Story.

It’s a conversation about what comes after the awareness stage—and what it will take to continue moving forward for kids.

Emily Hanford is an investigative journalist with APM Reports and creator of the podcast Sold a Story, whose reporting helped spark a national conversation about reading instruction, literacy outcomes, and the Science of Reading movement.

• Sold a Story by APM Reports
• Planet Word Museum interview with Dr. Carey Wright
• Interview featuring Reid Lyon & Margaret Goldberg
• Mississippi Literacy-Based Promotion Act
• Science of Reading
• Structured Literacy

Dyslexia advocacy movement includes many organizations like these: Decoding Dyslexia and International Dyslexia Foundation (IDA)

Resources & References:

• Structured Literacy (International Dyslexia Association): https://dyslexiaida.org/structured-literacy/
• Kansas Literacy Initiatives (KSDE): https://www.ksde.org/Agency/Division-of-Learning-Services/English-Language-Arts/Literacy
• Kansas Policy Institute: https://kansaspolicy.org/
• Phillips Fundamental Learning Center: https://www.funlearn.org/

Sit with it.

Then share this episode with someone—a parent, a teacher, a leader.

And if this conversation helped you see things differently, a quick rating or review helps more people find it—and helps this message reach the people who need it most.

PODCAST MUSIC - SOUNDSTRIPE.COM Marie - Help & Hope, Acreage - In My Head, Featherland - Growing Pains, Moments - Meridian Mood, Moments - Lost Love, Lost Ghosts - Celebrated Life, Matt Wigton - Year End.

This podcast is produced by KB PODCASTS

What if the question isn’t whether children can learn to read— but whether we’ve built systems that actually teach them?

In this episode, we step inside a real example of what happens when research, instruction, leadership, and community support are aligned. Through the story of the Phillips Fundamental Learning Center, we explore what it actually takes to move from awareness to implementation—and what becomes possible when we do.

This isn’t theory. This is what it looks like when it works.

And maybe more importantly—this episode asks us to sit with a harder truth:

We don’t need more awareness alone. We need alignment. We need implementation. We need systems built around what we already know works.

Because literacy is not a mystery.

And when we choose to build for it— change doesn’t just become possible.

It becomes visible.

• Cece Woolf — a former classroom teacher who reveals the moment she realized something wasn’t adding up—and how understanding how children learn to read changed everything.
• Dana Hensley — early PFLC board member, sharing how vision, leadership, and persistence helped transform an idea into a lasting organization.
• Bunny Hill — educator and literacy advocate, illustrating both the reality of student struggle and the transformation that happens when instruction finally meets the learner.
• Marietta Wetzel — parent perspective on the power of assessment, early intervention, and what happens when schools, families, and specialists work together.
• Karen [Last Name] — capital campaign leader, offering insight into how belief becomes infrastructure—and the moments that helped others understand the mission.
• James Franko — from the Kansas Policy Institute, offering perspective on the systemic barriers shaping literacy outcomes.
• Jill Hodge — educator, trainer, and school board member, sharing what she’s seeing across districts as awareness—and change—begins to grow.
• Sheree Utash — higher education and workforce leader, connecting literacy to opportunity, workforce readiness, and long-term community impact.

• What happens when teachers are never taught how to teach reading
• The difference between student ability and instructional access
• Why assessment can change not just outcomes—but identity
• How alignment between schools, families, and specialists changes everything
• The real work behind building sustainable solutions—not just ideas
• Why literacy is not just an education issue—but a systems issue

Resources & References:

• Structured Literacy (International Dyslexia Association): https://dyslexiaida.org/structured-literacy/
• Kansas Literacy Initiatives (KSDE): https://www.ksde.org/Agency/Division-of-Learning-Services/English-Language-Arts/Literacy
• Kansas Policy Institute: https://kansaspolicy.org/
• Phillips Fundamental Learning Center: https://www.funlearn.org/

Sit with it.

Then share this episode with someone—a parent, a teacher, a leader.

And if this conversation helped you see things differently, a quick rating or review helps more people find it—and helps this message reach the people who need it most.

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This podcast is produced by KB PODCASTS