April 19, 2017

The power of a reading partner

Sydney is a full-time college student, future librarian, and a valued reading partner. Sydney learned about Reading Partners last fall and has since faithfully tutored a first-grade student at Sugar Creek Charter School two days per week. She was especially excited when she learned that her student’s mid-year assessment scores showed improvement in every literacy skill area. “This was awesome for me because sometimes I felt like the lesson plans we were following were repetitive,” Sydney shared,

I am so happy that the Reading Partners curriculum and my tutoring strategies are helping her become a fantastic reader!

Site coordinator, Kierra Huff, is delighted to have Sydney at Sugar Creek. “Sydney is attentive and really cares about her student’s improvement and it truly shows,” said Kierra. “She is very supportive and has established a great relationship with her student’s teacher, who gives her progress updates and strategies for improvement.”

Sydney is currently a sophomore at UNC Charlotte majoring in health communications and plans to pursue a master’s degree in library science. She also works part-time as a library aide with the Charlotte Mecklenburg Library. Sydney has actively volunteered at numerous community organizations since she was young and when asked about tutoring at Sugar Creek she responded, 

I believe in Reading Partners’ mission. I know how important literacy is and this is a great volunteer opportunity for anyone who wants to help children.

Reading Partners is honored to provide a platform for Sydney to serve her community and change the trajectory for a student’s future. Our volunteers are the heart of our program and together, we are changing lives – one child at a time.