Structured
One-on-one Tutoring
(Reading, Writing, Mathematics)
For the past 9 years, CentroNía
has served over 800 children and youth, helping them
to move from below basic skills in reading and mathematics
to achieve proficiencies that exceed their grade level.
Students from 20 DCPS, and local area Charter Schools
in grades K through 12 receive one-on-one tutoring,
using a highly structured reading and math curriculum
at a pace comfortable and appropriate for that student.
CentroNía currently offers tutoring at its Learning
Center, located in Columbia Heights.
Our
Goals.
- to raise the reading and math scores
of our students above grade level
- provide children and youth with the tools and motivation
to succeed
- prepare our students to feel comfortable and capable
to succeed in state-mandated standardized testing.
Our Volunteers.
Our committed volunteers, who hail from a range of professional
and educational backgrounds, undergo rigorous training
before they are matched with their tutee. Students are
assessed and these trained tutors support them throughout
the school year. Since the inception of this one-on-one
tutoring program, students have increased their reading
and math levels by at least 1.5 grade levels.
English and Spanish speaking volunteers are still needed
for:
- Tuesday and Thursday, 4 pm – 6 pm
- Wednesday, 5 pm – 7 pm
- Saturday, 10 am – 12 pm
Please contact Micah Jones at (202) 332.4200,
ext. 193 or mjones@centronia.org to get involved!
• One-on-One Reading and Math Tutor Description
• Volunteer Application 2009
• Benefits of Becoming a Tutor
CentroNía’s strong partnerships with DC
Reads and the Neighbors Project have connected us with
committed volunteers from American University, the Catholic
University of America, and George Washington University.
These community partnerships have been integral to the
program’s success.
(Parents and children read together)
CentroNía’s Family Book Clubs project
is developed in partnership with the District of Columbia’s
Early Care and Education Administration. The purpose
of the Book Clubs is to increase the literacy skills,
language development and school readiness of children
ages 0 to 5 while simultaneously strengthening parental
literacy skills. To achieve this goal, parents and children
are brought together in small groups where they read,
share stories and build relationships based on mutual
trust and respect in a multicultural setting. Currently,
neighborhood book clubs are up and running in Wards
1, 4, 7 and 8, but the goal is to make the Family Book
Clubs a city-wide program.
Parent participation is crucial to the success of the
Family Book Clubs. Prior to the beginning of each 13-week
session, parents are trained to recruit and lead a group
of 15-20 children and parents in weekly meetings conducted
in their neighborhoods. Parent leaders receive free
materials and stipends in compensation for their time.
These coaches are responsible for recruiting participants
and for holding the 1 ½ hour weekly meetings
in public spaces in their neighborhoods.
During the weekly sessions, parents and children from
diverse backgrounds come together to read, tell stories
and have conversations about traditions and culture.
Parents read a story to their children, after which
there is considerable time for literacy activities and
group discussion, followed by a snack. Each parent and
child receives a copy of that week’s shared story
to take home and add to their private library. Additionally,
weekly sessions provide an opportunity for bonding between
parents and their children and build strong parent leaders
within individual neighborhoods.
The benefits of the Family Book Clubs are many. It
has been documented time and again that children whose
parents read to them consistently do better in school
than children whose parents do not. By targeting the
District’s low-income African-American and Latino
families, the Family Book Clubs seek to establish a
culture of academic achievement and parental involvement
among the city’s underserved population.
For more information contact: Family
Book Clubs Coordinator Diane Gardner at 202-332-4200
ext. 126 or dgardner@centronia.org,
or Family Book Clubs Coordinator Claudia Belloso at
202-332-4200 ext. 126 or cbelloso@centronia.org.
Community in Schools
(Out of School Time Programs)
Our Community in Schools' model is a set of collaborations
with local public and private schools within Washington,
D.C. and beyond. In our Community in Schools model,
we provide an integrated focus on academics and family
support, health, social services, youth and family development
which will lead to improved student learning, stronger
families and healthier communities.
In CentroNía's Communities
in School we offer:
- We offer a multiethnic and bilingual community to
our parents and students.
- Our collaboration concentrates on building a sense
of community around the individual schools for all
of the stakeholders.
- We strive to create quality educational and social
development activities for young people and residents
in Washington, DC.
At each of our Community in
Schools locations, there is a specific staffing pattern
which consists of:
1) The CIS Coordinators
2) The Family Literacy Specialists
3) The Family Support Workers
4) Out-of-School Time Teachers
5) The Arts Specialists
6) The Mentoring Volunteers
7) The Parent Volunteers
8) The Volunteer Tutors
During academic school year, 2006-2007, we will provide
mathematics and reading tutorial services to 1,200 underserved
children and youth, from infancy through 12th grade.
Experience
Corps:
(Day Time Mentoring)
CentroNía proudly
welcomed Experience Corps DC to its growing roster of
programs in 2006. Experience Corps is an award-winning
national program that matches unmet community needs
with society’s largest pool of untapped human
capital – people over 55. Today more than 1,800
Experience Corps members work with children in urban
public schools and after-school programs in 19 cities,
where they help teach children to read and develop the
confidence and skills to succeed in school and in life.
Research shows that Experience Corps boosts student
academic performance, helps schools and youth-serving
organizations become more successful, strengthens ties
between these institutions and surrounding neighborhoods,
and enhances the well-being of the volunteers in the
process.
ABOUT the relationship
CentroNía and Experience Corps, two nonprofits
with successful histories in the District of Columbia,
will join forces and continue to provide high-quality
tutoring, mentoring, and homework help to students attending
public schools in Washington, DC.
CentroNía and Experience Corps each bring distinct
organizational strengths to the partnership.
• CentroNía has a large waiting list for
its programs; Experience Corps has a large and growing
group of older adults eager for high-quality, well-managed
opportunities to serve. This joint effort is an intelligent
match of needs and resources.
• CentroNía’s core competence is bilingual
education. Experience Corps currently serves schools
with predominantly African American student populations.
By joining forces, the groups can recruit more bilingual
tutors and provide more tutoring to students who do
not speak English at home.
• CentroNía wide variety of programs will
provide additional support – including arts enrichment,
family book clubs, and parent education – to the
families of students served by Experience Corps members.
For more information, contact:
Michelle Clark
CentroNia
Phone: 202-332-4200
dcinfo@experiencecorps.org
www.experiencecorps.org |
