January 12, 2017
Mentoring Month provides perfect opportunity to take action to support early literacy in Charlotte
For Immediate Release
Contact: Sharon Harrington, Executive Director, Reading Partners Charlotte
(704) 618-4398, sharon.harrington@
January is National Mentoring Month and 115 students in Charlotte are waiting to be matched with volunteer reading partners
(Charlotte Region, NC) January 10, 2017 — January is National Mentoring Month, and Reading Partners is encouraging more community members to join its efforts to provide students in under-resourced schools with the tutoring and mentorship they need to become proficient readers by the fourth grade. A proven national nonprofit that mobilizes community volunteers to work one-on-one with struggling readers, Reading Partners aims to serve 250 students in Charlotte, NC in the 2016-17 school year. Currently, there are over 115 students at 6 local elementary schools waiting to be matched with tutors. Mentoring month is the perfect time to get involved.
In Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools, nearly 80 percent of low-income fourth graders are not reading at grade level. Reading is the foundation for all future learning and Reading Partners tutors provide the individualized literacy support and mentorship to help students make the all-important shift from learning to read to reading to learn.
Volunteer, Jennifer Tamalone-Brearly, expresses her reason for volunteering, “I love reading. I previously was a teacher, and loved working with students and I wanted to share that experience. I wanted to make it easier for anyone who was struggling with reading by helping them find new skills, excitement and perspectives. It is fun seeing my student read and laugh, hearing her become more confident as a reader. And it is absolutely worth it! There is very little time commitment. There are so many times you are looking for a way to give back but you may not see the impact of your effort. Tutoring with Reading Partners Charlotte is an easy way to make a difference!”
Reading Partners volunteers utilize an easy-to-follow, individualized lesson plan each week, specific to their students’ needs in order to meet them at their level and help build both literacy skills and confidence. Reading Partners Charlotte has an immediate need for volunteer tutors who can commit to at least an hour a week to work with students in the following schools:
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Joseph W. Grier Academy – 8330 Grier Road, Charlotte, NC 28215
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Oakdale Elementary – 1825 Oakdale Road, Charlotte, NC 28216
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Sterling Elementary – 9601 China Grove Church Road, Pineville, NC 28134
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Stoney Creek Elementary- 14015 Mallard Roost Road, Charlotte, NC 28262
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Sugar Creek Charter – 4101 North Tryon Street, Charlotte, NC 28206
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Tuckaseegee Elementary- 2028 Little Rock Road, Charlotte, NC 28214
To learn more, please email volunteerNC@readingpartners.
About Reading Partners
Reading Partners empowers students to succeed in reading and in life by engaging community volunteers to provide one-on-one tutoring. The national nonprofit organization will provide proven, individualized literacy tutoring to more than 11,000 elementary school students in under-resourced schools across ten states and the District of Columbia in the 2016-17 school year. Visit readingpartners.org, or connect with us on LinkedIn, Twitter, and Facebook, to learn more.
