Press release from the United Way of Allen County:
United Way Reaches Volunteer Goal!
200 Volunteers Start Tomorrow to Help Children Attending Summer School
United Way of Allen County has successfully recruited 200 volunteers to work this summer with children who struggle with reading. The volunteer recruitment is part of Learn United, a ten-year effort to ensure all students read at grade level by the end of third grade.  Volunteers start tomorrow, June 17.
Volunteers are committing at least one hour per week for one month, June 17-July 17, to work with second- and third-graders who are up to two years behind in reading. In Allen County, 40 percent of low-income third-graders are not passing the reading portion of ISTEP, and experts estimate that 74 percent will never catch up if they miss this important milestone.
Learn United aims to connect community volunteers with children who struggle reading through a variety of programs designed to improve their literacy skills. Volunteer opportunities are offered by several agencies. Learn United volunteers go through a background check using a system that reviews more than 30 million criminal records nationwide and all 50 states’ sex offender registries. All Learn United volunteers are provided training in the foundations of literacy and gain simple skills to help children learn to read.
Fort Wayne Community Schools expects to have more than 1,200 students enrolled in summer school this year. Teachers recommend students for additional learning opportunities during the summer. United Way and FWCS encourage parents to make the summer enrichment program a priority, as students attending the summer learning program are at the greatest risk of not reaching the critical milestone of reading at grade level by third grade. Any parent having transportation issues should contact FWCS.
“During the summer it’s easy for families to get busy and for kids to miss summer school, but we hope parents take advantage of this opportunity. It’s just one month, but could help shape their child’s future,” says Jamie Garwood, Director of Education Initiatives and Strategies for United Way of Allen County
Learn United is a collaborative partnership between United Way of Allen County, Fort Wayne Community Schools, East Allen County Schools, The Greater Fort Wayne Chamber of Commerce, Allen County Education Partnership and the Fort Wayne Urban League. Click here for more information.
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How many readers of this blog are included in the 200 volunteers?
This is a worthy project and I appreciate your efforts and commitment John! I would like to do every project that comes across my desk, but then, I’d have no time for work or blogging!
Seriously, whether it’s this project or another, volunteering and public service should be a required part of everyone’s life. You can make a difference, if you let yourself!
Thank you again, John and all the others who volunteer!
I am – at Northcrest on Monday mornings
Thanks John! Volunteers like you are really making a difference. We have thousands of kids in this community who are falling behind. With the help of volunteers like you, we can get them caught up! Volunteers are needed all year long. Be one of the 1000 volunteers who help out this year in schools and at afterschool programs! http://www.LearnUnited.org
You can also join us on Facebook and follow our community’s progress!
Stephen, this just requires an hour of your time. In the fall we’ll be recruiting for this years Real Men Read volunteers. That’s just 1 hour a month- that’s it! Small investments of time that make a big impact. We can all find a little time, even with blogging 🙂
Jamie, I appreciate it would take only an hour of my time, but my comment was that if I did everything that is sent to me, I would have no time for work or blogging.
I already volunteer a couple of hours a week for another worthy cause and yes, small investments of time do make large impacts. I recognize this which is why I take the time to post items like this on the blog.
Thanks for sharing it with readers!