County By The Numbers – The Florida Gap Map Shows Hillsborough County has 7,913 Third Graders Not Reading at Grade Level and 62,378 Kids Living in Poverty

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The graphic above displays the performance of Hillsborough County as showcased on The Florida Gap Map. The “Children in Poverty” Florida Scorecard tile is also included to provide additional context into Hillsborough’s prosperity performance.

The Florida Equality of Opportunity Initiative is on a mission to secure the future of all Floridians with its three projects, starting with our youngest residents. As an extension of the Initiative’s efforts, The Florida Gap Map is raising awareness to thousands of Florida’s business leaders about the number of third grade readers and children living in poverty in their communities, so that they can take action. It is the mission of the Florida Equality of Opportunity Initiative’s Florida Business Alliance for Early Learning Project to ensure 100% of third graders are reading at or above grade level by 2030 and the Florida Prosperity Project to cut childhood poverty in half by 2030 – under the strategic direction of the Florida 2030 Blueprint. Our youngest Floridians are tomorrow’s workforce. We must continue to unite as business community to eliminate barriers to prosperity to secure Florida’s future.

Fortunately, the business community in Hillsborough has answered the call, and in doing so, many innovative programs have been created to address the challenges faced throughout the community. Examples include CEOs in schools, a volunteer effort which includes more than 150 Hillsborough area CEOs spending times in classrooms throughout the county, and the Children’s Home Society’s Community Partnership School, Mort Elementary, a school that address the holistic challenges students face inside, and outside, the classroom.  

Visit TheFloridaGapMap.org to check out more analysis for Hillsborough County and be sure to search for your specific county as well. The Map allows you to narrow down to the zip codes and elementary schools that need attention the most in your neighborhood. Please contact Kyle Baltuch, SVP of Equality of Opportunity, at kbaltuch@flchamber.com for information on how you can get involved with closing the gaps in your neighborhood.