Support The Read-In and help secure our $5,000 Match!

The second 1619 Freedom School Read-In brings together students, families, educators, and community members for a celebration of storytelling and culturally grounded literacy. Building on the success of our inaugural event, which welcomed more than 800 attendees, the 2026 Read-In will feature nationally recognized authors Jason Reynolds, Angie Thomas, and Renée, further expanding the reach and impact of this experience.

“The Read-In is rooted in something our community has always known: that when children see themselves in the books they read, they become better readers, stronger students, and more confident young people,” said Nikole Hannah-Jones, Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist, founder of the 1619 Freedom School, and a graduate of Waterloo West High School. “Bringing Jason, Angie, and Renée to Waterloo means that kids who grow up here get to sit in the same room as some of the most gifted authors in the country. These are authors who write stories that look and feel like their own lives. That matters for every child who walks through those doors.”

Reynolds, Thomas, and Watson are among the most widely read and decorated authors writing for young people in the country today. Reynolds is a #1 New York Times bestselling author, a MacArthur Fellow, and a former National Ambassador for Young People’s Literature whose books include Long Way Down, Stamped, and the Track series. Watson is a #1 New York Times bestselling author with more than one million books sold, a Newbery Medal recipient for All the Blues in the Sky, and co-author with Hannah-Jones of The 1619 Project: Born on the Water. Thomas is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Hate U Give, adapted into a major motion picture, and On the Come Up, also a major motion picture.

A defining element of the Read-In is direct access to books. Every family leaves with culturally meaningful literature, placing stories directly into the hands of young readers. In 2025, more than 3,000 books were distributed, and in 2026, we anticipate distributing approximately 3,000 books to students and families across the Waterloo community.