Literations is a nonprofit literacy organization dedicated to improving the reading skills of 1-4th grade students in under-resourced communities of Greater Boston and MetroWest. Our intergenerational model pairs caring, highly-trained older adult volunteers with young students for high-dosage 1:1 tutoring and mentoring relationships.
For 30 years we have made a difference in young lives. From the start, our mission has always been to help young students become literacy proficient. We believe children have the most to gain from achieving literacy proficiency by fourth grade, to be confident learners equipped for lifelong success.
0:05 Welcome and Introductions of the Panelists 3:49 Timeline of events since March - Organizational response to COVID-19 8:55 How we developed our virtual literacy coaching model 11:30 Introducing "ZoomBA" - Zoom Break Activities 14:55 Specifics on virtual literacy program delivery. Content focus and delivery methods. 18:55 Program oversight (safety monitoring), scheduling and digital program resource development 24:02 "ZoomBA" #2 stretch break 24:51 Recruitment and Training practices for volunteer literacy coaches 28:45 Our current school partners and preliminary schedule for the 2020-2021 school year 31:58 Additional updates regarding our work regarding Diversity, Equity and Inclusion 35:17 Q&A 35:40 How are you coordinating student participation with BPS scheduling? 37:21 How do you get teaching materials and books to kids and coaches? 39:24 What is the composition of the new virtual volunteer cohort this year? How many are new vs returning from the traditional Reading Coaches program? 39:54 What provision is being made for access to broadband service for students and volunteers who lack it? 41:50 How many students are in our program now? 42:58 Does the move to virtual service delivery shift the qualifications you look for in recruiting new volunteers? 46:05 What are the minimum number of hours required for volunteering-per week & per day? How can I sign up for training? 48:18 What is the support system for working parents who may have difficulty setting up their schedules for their children so they can actually benefit from our literacy coaching sessions? 50:10 What is the difference between zoom education and the zoom we are using now? 52:19 Can you comment on how your approach to virtual programming compares to efforts by other organizations you may know about? 54:30 How will you be able to track the effectiveness of this new model? 57:52 How has the economic impact of the pandemic affected the organization's progress in its strategic plan? What is the immediate need that the funding community can provide to best support the organization and the students they serve? 1:01:26 Questions regarding the monitoring process 1:02:04 What role will writing and drawing play in the virtual program? 1:03:36 Conclusion and thank you for joining us today
