Jacob Moreno is a father of three. His oldest son, also named Jacob, was going into the second grade at Burnett Elementary during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic when Moreno noticed him having a hard time learning to read.

During the school year, Moreno was introduced to a nonprofit that Burnett partners with called CYCLE, which stands for Changing Young Lives through Education. The nonprofit rewards second graders who meet or exceed their reading goals with a brand new bicycle and helmet, with the hopes of encouraging them to continue reading after the program ends.

“It helped [Jacob] grow more on his ideas and his creativity,” Moreno said. “It actually motivated him to read more.”

Moreno said the program has helped not only his oldest son but also his other son, Jax, and soon his youngest son, Jace, who will be participating in the program this year.

“I’m a big believer that you've got to work for it, don’t let things be handed to you, so I think it’s pretty good what [CYCLE] is doing,” Moreno said.


About the program

CYCLE Executive Director Rebecca Roberts said the nonprofit was created in 2000 to address the need to improve literacy in Houston, working with Title I schools, which are schools that typically receive extra federal support and have a larger number of students from low-income families, according to the National Center for Education Statistics.

Roberts said the nonprofit works with second graders because it is an important time in child development.

“In second grade, students are still learning how to read. They’re still learning those mechanics of reading,” Roberts said. “When they get into third grade ... if they don’t already have those mechanics, they're not going to be successful.”


Roberts said the nonprofit's goals are tailored to each child. The organization tracks students’ conduct and attendance, ensuring they are well-behaved and paying attention in school.
Cycle Houston rewards second graders who achieve their reading goals by gifting them bicycles. (Courtesy Cycle Houston)
Cycle Houston rewards second graders who achieve their reading goals by gifting them bicycles. (Courtesy Cycle Houston)
According to CYCLE's website, the organization partnered with over 86 schools in 2024, and a total of 185,000 bikes have been awarded to second graders since its launch. CYCLE expects to give out 200,000 bikes by the end of 2025.

“Our future rests on our children,” Roberts said. “To be successful in the future, they have to be able to function. They have to be literate both in words and in math. They also have to be healthy."

What they’re saying

Jae Lee, the principal at Burnett Elementary and advisory board member at CYCLE, said the organization has helped his second graders improve their reading level well beyond the second grade.


According to data that Lee compiled, the average reading level at the start of the 2021-2022 school year for the 90 students who participated in the program was Level F, equivalent to the reading level of a midyear first grader. By the end of the program in December, students were reading at Level K, a second-grade reading level.

Moreno’s two sons said CYCLE allowed them to read some of their favorite books, such as "The Last Kids on Earth" for Jacob Moreno and sports and wrestling biographies for Jax Moreno.

“I just like it because I enjoy the bike, and I like to learn,” Jax Moreno said.

Get involved


CYCLE partners with more than 80 schools in several school districts across the Greater Houston region, including Houston ISD.

Title I schools interested in partnering with CYCLE Houston can sign up on the organization's website.