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Give Every Student a Reading Specialist. No Hiring Required.

LUCA is an intelligent reading specialist that delivers phoneme-level reading instruction in after-school and summer environments without requiring specialist staff. Your facilitators set students up. LUCA handles the rest.

Trusted by programs and backed by leading research institutions

National Science Foundation SBIRCarnegie Mellon UniversityUnited States Patent and Trademark OfficeESSA Tier IV Building Evidence Badge by Leanlab EducationNewSchools Venture FundProvident Charter SchoolCodesign Product Certification by Leanlab EducationNew Kensington-Arnold School DistrictSXSW EDUNational Science Foundation SBIRCarnegie Mellon UniversityUnited States Patent and Trademark OfficeESSA Tier IV Building Evidence Badge by Leanlab EducationNewSchools Venture FundProvident Charter SchoolCodesign Product Certification by Leanlab EducationNew Kensington-Arnold School DistrictSXSW EDU

LUCA is an intelligent reading specialist that listens at the phoneme level, analyzes each student's skill gaps in real time, and builds a personalized reading path automatically. For after-school and summer programs, that means structured literacy gains without a single certified reading teacher on payroll.

The After-School Dilemma

Does This Sound Familiar?

Have you ever been asked to show academic gains without trained reading specialists on staff? To satisfy grant renewal with activity logs that do not prove learning? To keep kids engaged when they have already sat through seven hours of school?

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“My staff are passionate -- but they are not reading specialists. Hiring certified teachers for every site is an impossible expense.”

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“Our funder wants evidence of academic movement. Generic activity logs do not satisfy renewal requirements anymore.”

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“They have already spent seven hours in a classroom. If reading feels like homework, engagement disappears and practice becomes punishment.”

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“They want outcomes without giving us the tools to deliver them. We carry the accountability; they control the resources.”

The system puts the accountability on you and withholds the specialist support you need to deliver.

LUCA closes that gap. It is the specialist your program cannot afford to hire -- already built in.

See how LUCA does this
LUCALabs

How LUCA Works for Programs

LUCA is not a curriculum. It is an intelligent reading specialist that listens, analyzes, and builds -- so your facilitators never have to become phonics experts.

SoundScout phoneme-level listening

Listens

Phoneme-level precision

SoundScout captures every phoneme a student produces. No specialist is needed to interpret the data. Your staff just get students started.

Assessment Intelligence skill gap analysis

Analyzes

Automatic skill gap identification

Assessment Intelligence maps every student's reading profile after each session. GrowthTrack generates funder-ready outcome reports automatically.

StoryGen personalized reading paths

Builds

Personalized reading paths

StoryGen creates interest-based stories at each student's exact level -- sports, animals, space, adventure. Students stay engaged because it never feels like more school.

Proven Outcomes

Results Your Funders Can Cite

+0.0
WPM average
Fluency Gain
2026 Pilot
+0.0%
Accuracy Gain
Average improvement
2026 Pilot
0K+
Words Read
in Pilot
Dashboard showing student progress and funder-ready growth data
Built for After-School Environments

Designed for Your Constraints

LUCA fits into the way after-school programs actually run -- short windows, generalist staff, mixed grade levels, and funders who want proof.

15-20 Minute Sessions

Students make measurable progress in short windows, ideal for rotation models and tight afternoon schedules.

Facilitators, Not Specialists

Your staff encourage and support. LUCA handles phonics instruction, assessment, and path adjustment automatically.

Automatic Grant Reporting

GrowthTrack generates outcome documentation in grant-ready language -- aligned to 21st CCLC and state OST requirements -- without manual data entry.

Validated

Backed by Leading Research Institutions

NSF SBIR Grant

NSF SBIR Grant

Federal research funding. Only 3% of applicants selected.

Carnegie Mellon University Language Technologies Institute

Carnegie Mellon University

Research partnership with the Language Technologies Institute.

United States Patent and Trademark Office

U.S. Patent No. 12,394,332 B2

Proprietary phoneme-level assessment technology.

NewSchools Venture Fund

NewSchools Venture Fund

Portfolio company selected for educational impact and innovation.

Questions Program Directors Ask

Frequently Asked Questions

Yes. LUCA is designed for non-specialist implementation. Your staff facilitate -- getting students set up and encouraging effort. LUCA handles all the instruction, assessment, and path adaptation at the phoneme level.

Yes. LUCA sessions run 15 to 20 minutes. Students make meaningful progress with consistent short sessions, which fits after-school rotation models without displacing other activities.

LUCA is built on Science of Reading methodology, which most education grants require. GrowthTrack automatically generates outcome documentation using grant-ready language aligned to 21st CCLC and state OST requirements -- no manual data entry needed.

LUCA feels different from school. Students choose topics they care about -- sports, animals, adventure -- and receive personalized stories built to their exact reading level. SkillQuest adds badges and streaks that keep engagement high across sessions. When students ask to use LUCA, your engagement problem is solved.

Most programs are running within one session. Your staff receive a short facilitation guide. Students complete a brief onboarding that sets their interest profile. LUCA assesses baseline reading level automatically and begins instruction in the first session. No specialist training required.

Start With a Free Trial

See how LUCA delivers specialist-level reading outcomes for your program. Start free today.

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