FAMILY LITERACY PROJECT

The Family Literacy program provides numerous educational services to children and families. With programs for both parents and students, Family Literacy is an extended classroom.  The Literacy program helps parents achieve basic literacy and English- language skills. The tutorial program helps students reach grade-level competency in reading and mathematics. Students also receive support with homework and college preparation.

Our Programs include:

• One-on One Structured Tutoring
  (Reading, Writing & Math)
• Family Book Clubs
  (Infants 0-5 years old, where parents and children read together)
• Community in Schools
  (Out of School Time Programs)
• Experience Corps
  (Day Time Mentoring)

                                    One-on-One Structured Tutoring

                                                       (Reading, Writing & Math)

TUTOR & CHANGE THE LIFE OF A CHILD

In 2006, 64% of all District of Columbia Public Schools DCPS and public charter school students are below level in reading and 73% in math?

For the past six years, CentroNía has served over 500 children and has helped children move from below average in reading to meeting or exceeding their grade level requirements. 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 two elementary schools, Bruce Monroe and Brightwood Elementary.

Our goal is to raise the reading and math scores of our students so that they perform at or above grade level. CentroNía seeks to provide the children in our program with the tools and motivation necessary to achieve and escape the cycle of unemployment and poverty that has afflicted so many in their parents' generation. The ability to read well, to excel in school, and the desire to learn are prerequisites to breaking this cycle.

Students work One-on-One wtih a volunteer in the structured reading and math program.  After students are assessed, trained tutors assist them with their "needs improvement" skills. Since the inception of this year-long program, students have increased their reading and math levels by at least 1.5 grade levels.

CentroNía's One-on-One tutoring program recruits committed volunteers from within the community and area universities. The organization's strong partnerships with Georgetown University, the Catholic University of America, and George Washington University through the DC Reads program and the Neighbors Project have been a key element in the program's success.

As a volunteer, you can choose from Mon-Thur 3-6 at our external sites and on site we have Wednesdays from 5-7 or Saturdays from 10-12.

Please contact Karen Hopkins at 202-332-4200 x213 or khopkins@centronia.org to get involved! To apply or find out more information, click the links below.

• One-on-One Reading and Math Tutor Description
• Volunteer Application Fall 2007
• Program Contact List Fall 07
  
  
  ))))))))CENTRONIA TUTORING SITES 2007-08

Please contact Irma Rivera, Family Literacy Program Director by telephone at (202) 332-4200 Ext. 138 or by email at irivera@centronia.org

                                                 Family Book Clubs

                                                   (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