Summary: Calvin College receives a $20,000 grant from the JP Morgan Chase Foundation to provide literacy tutoring for at least 20 students from Grand Rapids' Buchanan Elementary School during the summer of 2010.
Calvin College has received a $20,000 grant from the JP Morgan Chase Foundation to help fund its "Readers in Determined Education" (RIDE) literacy program for the summer of 2010.
Now in its fourth year, RIDE provides tutoring to more than 20 Buchanan Elementary students who read below grade-level at the southwest Grand Rapids school. In addition, Buchanan staff members are trained extensively on meeting the students' needs throughout the academic year.
"Literacy is a critical skill for academic and life-long success," said Richard Haslinger, president of Chase in west Michigan. "Through its grants, the JP Morgan Chase Foundation helps children acquire the knowledge and skills needed to become productive, engaged citizens."
The RIDE program is just one way that Calvin is partnering with Buchanan Elementary to help expand the educational opportunities for students and improve the instructional strategies for teachers, said Dr. Judith Vander Woude, Calvin professor of communication arts and sciences. Since 2003, Dr. James Rooks, dean of teacher education at Calvin, has provided Buchanan teachers with professional development in English language arts. The collaboration has both built the capacity of Buchanan staff and made a positive impact on student achievement.
"For us, RIDE is a blessing," said Yolanda Valenzuela, principal of Buchanan Elementary. "Our students lose so much during the summer. Now they come back to school with better reading skills than they did before [summer]."
"Our teachers who have worked for RIDE see the benefits and use what they have learned in their classrooms," added Valenzuela.
Post-testing of past participants shows significant gains in reading comprehension, reading fluency and vocabulary skills. Classroom teachers report the participants have new enthusiasm for learning and are more confident in their ability to read.
Said one past RIDE student participant:
"I was really sad when RIDE was over, but I got over it and kept going. Now I read chapter books. I am reading Harry Potter books and like them better than the movies because the movies leave out so many details."
The students attend sessions three hours daily, four days a week for seven consecutive weeks in June and July.
For more info, contact Sheri Ippel at 616-243-7635, sheri.ippel@yahoo.com or Dr. Judith Vander Woude at 616-526-6283, jvwoude@calvin.edu.
Received on Wed Feb 3 09:04:53 2010
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