Future Forward
Last Revised: October 27, 2025
- Issue Areas
- K-12 education
Program overview
Increasing literacy: Future Forward is a literacy program for primary school students aimed at increasing reading proficiency via tutoring and by creating a familial-community network to support students.
Establishing a support network: Future Forward is designed for kindergarten through 5th grade students struggling with reading. It utilizes a systems approach based on the knowledge that students' learning is impacted by their home and community environment. As such the program uses a School-Community-Family partnership approach. The program is delivered by a site manager, tutors who are typically paraprofessionals or volunteers (often college students and other local community members), and a family engagement coordinator who carries out home visits and family outreach.
Providing in school interventions: Students receive at least 90 minutes of weekly one-on-one literacy tutoring during school hours. They engage in research-backed activities to improve phonics, reading, and writing abilities based on need. Their progress is assessed bi-weekly.
Promoting literacy at home: Future Forward focuses on maintaining an open line of communication between program staff, families, and teachers. Families are contacted at least twice a month via phone call, text, or however communication is most convenient for families. Future Forward conducts home visits and plans monthly literacy related events for students and their families to attend together. These aim to encourage reading outside of school and engage caregivers in students' education.
- Strategies
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Literacy curricula and interventions
- Cost per Participant
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$2,700 per student
- Location
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Wisconsin, Illinois, North Carolina, South Carolina, Kentucky, and Georgia.
Multiple studies with rigorous designs demonstrate that Future Forward is a well-supported approach to increasing student academic achievement and attendance.
A 2023 randomized controlled trial which followed Milwaukee Public School students for 5 years after completing Future Forward found that the program has sustained impacts on student reading achievement and school attendance. Program participation increased students' reading achievement by approximately ⅓ of a year's expected growth relative to non-participants. Additionally fewer Future Forward students were referred for special education services relative to those not included in the program.
A 2023 randomized controlled trial following students in Wisconsin and Alabama found that Future Forward participation increased students' reading assessments scores to a statistically significant degree and had the greatest impact on students of color.
In a 2021 randomized controlled trial examining Future Forward students across 3 states, researchers found that participants had 1.3% higher school attendance relative to students that did not receive the intervention. This was a statistically significant result, with the largest gains coming from disadvantaged populations, particularly students of color.
A 2020 randomized controlled trial found that Future Forward had a statistically significant positive impact on student literacy and school attendance.
A 2018 randomized controlled trial of Future Forward in Milwaukee Public School Students found that the program had a small, but statistically significant, positive impact on students' reading achievement.
Engaging families: When family members are informed of and involved in students' education, children generally feel more positive about school and thus perform better. Future Forwards family outreach efforts attempt to engage parents and integrate literacy into students' home lives by helping parents access literary resources and informing them of their students' progress. Family involvement can encourage students' progress beyond the end of the program.