Margaret McNamara

Margaret Craig McNamara was the founder of the nonprofit children's literacy organization Reading is Fundamental. McNamara attended University of California, Berkeley where she met Robert McNamara, whom she would marry in 1940. Her husband's appointment by President John F. Kennedy as U.S. Secretary of Defense led to their move to Washington, D.C.. Her experiences while tutoring children in the District led to the formation of Reading is Fundamen... more

Margaret Craig McNamara was the founder of the nonprofit children's literacy organization Reading is Fundamental. McNamara attended University of California, Berkeley where she met Robert McNamara, whom she would marry in 1940. Her husband's appointment by President John F. Kennedy as U.S. Secretary of Defense led to their move to Washington, D.C.. Her experiences while tutoring children in the District led to the formation of Reading is Fundamental (RIF), a nonprofit children's literacy organization dedicated to making reading a fun and beneficial part of everyday life. It is the largest literacy program in the country. On January 16, 1981 President Jimmy Carter awarded McNamara the Medal of Freedom for her work with RIF. She died of cancer sixteen days later. After many early organizational meeting with other educators in the District, McNamara secured a $150,000 grant from the Ford Foundation to support pilot activities in the District of Columbia. Following the success RIF had in... less