Reading Assist is a nonprofit organization that recruits, trains, and embeds AmeriCorps members from around the country willing to commit to a school year of service. We provide our accredited one-on-one Reading Assist Intervention Program to struggling readers in kindergarten through third grade in the highest-needs elementary schools. For students with significant reading challenges, such as dyslexia, traditional classroom or small group reading instruction and methods are simply not enough. Reaching reading proficiency is even more challenging when such a student is also an English language learner or born into a high-poverty environment. Reading Assist intentionally targets struggling readers in under-served schools who are in the lowest 10% in reading proficiency and have not experienced reading success through traditional methods. Our multi-sensory, structured approach to literacy education is grounded in our 30 years of experience working with struggling readers, and informed by the latest advances in cognitive neuroscience and reading research. Through the years, Reading Assist has helped thousands of struggling readers, establishing a regional and national reputation as a leader in literacy support to children, parents, and educators.
External link for Reading Assist
100 West 10th Street
Suite 910
Wilmington, DE 19801, US
Chester, PA, US
Washington, D.C., US
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I was honored to attend the launch of Governor John Carney’s initiative for mentoring youth with a focus on early literacy. This is critical in providing support and encouragement to many children, and a worthy program. Many thanks to Representative Kimberly Williams for her commitment to children and the Reading Assist Program. I am also grateful to Phyllis Russo, Program Manager for her continued support of our mission.
Happy Friday! This Friday, we are excited to feature Cal, a first-year fellow supporting children at Harmony Public Schools (Harmony DC Public Charter School). Earlier this week, Cal shared with us why he chose to serve as an AmeriCorps Reading Assist Fellow at an event we hosted in support of young, struggling, D.C. readers. Learning that for Cal, supporting children's literacy journey comes from a truly personal place makes it that much more special. Thank you for your service, Cal! https://lnkd.in/eXtSrD8w
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Last night, Judith Graham Kane and I had the honor of hosting a successful event for Reading Assist at Hill Prince in Washington, D.C. in support of struggling readers. It’s been an incredibly rewarding first month working with this amazing nonprofit, and seeing the support from so many in our extended community makes me even more excited about the work ahead. A huge thank you to everyone who attended and made the evening special—your presence and enthusiasm mean the world. Grateful for the chance to collaborate and make an impact alongside such a passionate network of supporters!
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I had the pleasure of attending the 2024 Delaware SHRM Conference, marking my first event since joining the organization this year. The conference featured engaging guest speakers, insightful panel discussions, and interactive breakout session. I also ran into Antoinette D. Patrick, SHRM-CP a former colleague 🙂. I'm excited about future networking opportunities and I am eager to bring back valuable insights to share with my team here at Reading Assist!
Last week our team attended multiple events in Washington, D.C. presented by the National Partnership for Student Success, including the NPSS 2024 Higher Education Summit and a special presentation of findings from the 2023-24 NPSS Principal Survey at The White House. Reading Assist is proud to be included in the list of our nation’s schools and youth-serving organizations whose work has aided the Biden-Harris Administration’s goal of recruiting an additional 250,000 adults into high-impact student support roles a year before its summer 2025 goal. Next week, we’ll be back in D.C. to celebrate the launch of our program in 15 Washington, D.C. schools as we celebrate our 35th year supporting young, struggling readers. If you are based in D.C. and are interested in meeting the team and learning about our goal to transform D.C.’s literacy landscape, please join us for an introductory cocktail hour at Hill Prince on Wednesday, October 23. Tap the link below for more details and to RSVP. https://lnkd.in/dFhRFRrm
We were honored to be present at the White House for the National Partnership for Student Success release of a report, showing how we and others have responded to the president’s call to service! Reading Assist Fellows are proud to be part of the 323,000 additional adults serving in our nations schools. Thank you for the always inspiring Michael Smith for grounding our work in serving others and to Deputy Secretary Cindy Marten for highlighting the importance of national service. It was extra special for us to be on the The White House grounds as Delaware’s largest AmeriCorps program and first program to expand to DC. We hear the guy who lives there knows a little something about small states with big ambition. You can read the full report here: https://lnkd.in/gDTK9i45
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Great conversations yesterday around building impactful partnerships! I was inspired with examples of collaboration with higher education, all aimed at creating better experiences for our K-12 students. A big thank you to the event sponsors, National Partnership for Student Success and National Partnership Student Success for being true thought leaders and facilitating connections that drive real change. Honored to be part of the discussion, especially as we expand into our newest region.
Yesterday our first cohort of Reading Assist Fellows for the 2024-25 school year was sworn in at Delaware's Legislative Hall alongside other AmeriCorps members committing to national service for the upcoming program year. Congratulations to everyone and thank you for your service! Photo courtesy of Americorps Delaware
Today is the first day of Dyslexia Awareness Month, which is celebrated in October every year. The month was established by the International Dyslexia Association (IDA) to raise awareness and educate the public about #DyslexiaAroundTheWorld. Dyslexia is a learning disability that affects reading and language processing. Understanding and spreading this message promotes a more inclusive and accessible world for people with dyslexia and low literacy. At Reading Assist, every day is an opportunity to create a more equitable learning experience for young, struggling readers with our year-round, high-dosage tutoring services. Learn more about how we have transformed Delaware’s literacy landscape for the last 35 years and how we plan to expand to serve more students #UntilEveryoneCanRead. #dyslexiaawarenessmonth #dyslexiaawareness #dyslexiasupport https://lnkd.in/evM7awV6
Reading engagement and progress are deeply connected. At Reading Assist, we often hear of students not only learning to read, but also learning to love reading. Today, Eric Williamson, our Director of Data, Evaluation & Grants presented at The Society for Acquired Resilience’s AR2024 conference event on our pilot study which examines changes in elementary student’s reading engagement. Presenting to a group of scientists, Eric shared how even the most struggling readers can become more resilient with access to high quality support.
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Great day of learning at Leading Philanthropy from Association of Fundraising Professionals - Greater Philadelphia Chapter (AFP-GPC), Association of Fundraising Professionals (AFP) - Brandywine Chapter, and The Foundation For Delaware County! Especially excited to try out new donor strategies from Brian Gawor, CFRE & Lisa Z G. and apply knowledge about Gen Z and philanthropy from Travis Coley of Whitepenny & Amy Henry of Flashlight Insights.