Education Series: Literacy tutors open door to brighter future for students

April 19, 2024

Every year, the Catawba County United Way (CCUW) partners with local nonprofits who are champions of improving the lives of youth and teens.

In a new weekly series, the CCUW will introduce the 2024 funded programs working in this impact area, highlighting how education is more than just grades and attendance.

This week – Patrick Beaver Learning Resources Center – tutoring program. 

BY JOHN BAILEY

jbailey@ccunitedway.com

Feeling lost in a classroom.

Afraid to try anything.

Carrying a stigma everywhere you go.

Not sure what the future means for someone like you.

These are sobering thoughts for an adult to have.

Now imagine if you’re a child in first or second grade, and you have no or very low reading skills.

This is exactly how you would feel every day in school, according to a group of Patrick Beaver LRC Augustine Literacy Project (ALP) tutors.

The ALP provides free, long-term, one-to-one instruction to improve the reading, writing and spelling abilities of struggling readers from low-income families. Volunteer tutors use a multi-sensory approach and research-based materials grounded in the science of reading.

“Usually, the kids who come to us, not only need this very systematic approach, they need many repetitions. Kids come to us not knowing their letters, not knowing their sounds,” Patrick Beaver LRC executive director Angela Lawrence said.

According the National Assessment of Educational Progress report card, the percentage of students in North Carolina who performed at or above the NAEP Proficient level in reading was 32 percent in 2022, leaving a large percentage of students in need of improvement.

Augustine tutors meet with their students twice a week for 40-60 minutes a session and provide individualized lessons targeted to the child’s specific needs. 

“They can get lost in a classroom full of others, so there is something special about individualized attention,” third year Augustine tutor Aretha Taylor said. “That one-on-one relationship and knowing someone cares for them and that they have support has a great, long-lasting impact.”

In the 2023-2024 school year, Patrick Beaver LRC had 34 active volunteers tutoring 45 students in 12 different public schools. Volunteer tutors receive 35 hours of intense training followed by observations, coaching, and monthly tutor enrichment sessions. To ensure consistency, the program coordinator pre and post-tests all ALP students. After working with an Augustine tutor for a year, typically students read an average of 31 words per minute faster, with 33 percent more accuracy, and with 57 percent better comprehension, according to ALP data.

Augustine tutor Jane Jonkhoff admitted her current student couldn’t read the first time they met and was nervous about trying anything. After working with Jonkhoff, the student now says reading is her favorite thing.

“It’s about turning around their outlook on school and education and what their possibilities might be in the future,” Jonkhoff said.

Jenny Summers, who’s been a tutor for four years, said the 35 hours training they receive is the difference.

“It’s not just listening, not just correcting them, but knowing how to get in there and understand what they’re missing,” Summers said.

Laura Meisner, in her third year as a tutor said her student started out very shy in their sessions, but each year, the student’s level of trust with Meisner grew.

“So, this year, she brings her breakfast into the room, and she’ll show up fifteen minutes early while I’m getting my stuff out,” Meisner said. “She would rather bring her breakfast in there and talk to me while I’m getting set up rather than eating in the cafeteria with her friends.

“It’s really fun and rewarding. It feels like this is what I was made for,” Summers said. “I truly enjoy it.”

To learn more about the Augustine Literacy Project, attend an Augustine Literacy Project informational coffee at the Patrick Beaver Learning Resource Center at 1925 Tate Boulevard SE at 10 a.m. the second Wednesday and third Tuesday of each month or email info@patrickbeaverlrc.org.

2023 Program Impact