Paul Copperman founds the Institute of Reading Development and serves as its first teacher.

Concerned about the state of reading education, Paul publishes his first book, The Literacy Hoax.

Paul hires Dave Soloway, who goes on to establish the Institute’s first partnerships with colleges and universities.

President Ronald Reagan appoints Paul to the National Council on Educational Research.

Paul publishes Taking Books to Heart, a how-to for parents looking for ways to help their kids.

The Institute expands outside of California for the first time when John Boyd opens a teaching center in Chicago. Doug Evans also joins the Institute and together with John leads a major teacher hiring and training push across the country.

Paul launches the Jim Bridger homeschool program, with a focus on reading and discussing books. Jim Bridger lesson plans have continued to inform the Institute’s approach to reading instruction today.

The Institute introduces the Pole and Vole Phonics series, ushering in over a decade of decoding instruction through richly illustrated workbooks with engaging audio stories.

Josh Kizner begins teaching for the Institute. He will go on to become the Institute’s COO, Vice President-Partnerships, and co-owner.

Paul writes his influential essay “Absorption” about the formative importance of kids getting lost in great books. It remains a key part of the Institute’s teacher training program.

For the first time, the Institute proudly offers its Reading Skills Programs to students in all 50 states.

The Institute launches its online learning portal, allowing students to complete fun, effective reading skills lessons from anywhere.

The Institute teaches its first live, online reading classes, establishing itself as a pioneer in this educational space.

The Institute’s curriculum team begins writing and publishing an engaging and imaginative series of books written at the right level of difficulty for young readers.

The Institute reaches a huge milestone with over 3 million total students taught.