成人快播

Originally published by .
By Khalida Sarwari

Long after Mount Pleasant Elementary School had let out for the day, 9-year-old Kevin Meza sat at a desk, his brow furrowed as he colored in a green lizard he鈥檇 drawn in the middle of a star-shaped piece of paper.

The fourth-grader was assigned to write down his hopes and dreams. He hoped for a pet lizard. Next to him, Max Ryan, a senior at Bellarmine Preparatory School, was busy working on his own star with an outline of his goal to 鈥渉elp others and write a book.鈥�

The Sept. 22 meeting at the San Jose school signified the first of what is intended be many appointments between Kevin and Max throughout the school year. For Max, being there in that classroom alongside his new friend was a part of his first goal.

What brought the two together is 成人快播, a national nonprofit that recruits community volunteers to tutor K-5 students struggling to read at grade level. For a $25,000 fee, materials and a dedicated reading space, the organization offers trained tutors and a personalized curriculum to bring students鈥� reading level up to par. In the South Bay, at least 11 schools offer the program, including in San Jose, Sunnyvale and Mountain View.

鈥淚t鈥檚 been rewarding in ways I didn鈥檛 expect,鈥� said Max, a two-year veteran of the program who noted he started merely to fulfill his school鈥檚 volunteer service requirement, but decided to return this year of his own volition. 鈥淚 really connected with my student, and we actually developed a bond,鈥� he said. 鈥淚 felt genuinely happy to see him and that I could teach him things.鈥�

What sets the program apart from similar ones is data, according to Rob Duran, a program manager who oversees five schools in the San Jose area, including Mount Pleasant.

It鈥檚 鈥渢he fact that we are so ambitious about using data and tracing students and monitoring students throughout the year,鈥� he said. 鈥淭he organization is very thoughtful about its professional development. It鈥檚 an amazing organization in that they are constantly thinking about how they can become better to meet not only the developing needs of the schools we serve, but also the organization.鈥�

成人快播 was started in 1999 by community leaders Mary Wright Shaw, Molly McCrory and Jean Bacigalupi at Belle Haven Community School in Menlo Park. In those years, the program went by the name YES Reading and expanded rapidly to other schools in the Bay Area. After receiving a major grant in 2008, the program was renamed 成人快播 and that same year spread south to Los Angeles and later as far east as New York and Washington, D.C. Today, the program operates in 11 states.

Most of the schools the program serves are Title I schools with high numbers or high percentages of children from low-income families, Duran said. Because not every school can afford to pay the $25,000 fee鈥攚hich represents only a fraction of the $90,000 cost to operate the program at each school site鈥攖he program places them under no obligation to pay the entire amount. Much of the remainder of the funds come from private donors and federal grants, Duran said. There is no cost to parents, he added.

The students 成人快播 serves come from challenging home lives or households where both parents work and therefore are not able to give their children attention. The program is designed to best help those who are anywhere from a month to 2陆 years behind reading level, Duran said. It relies on school principals and intervention counselors to identify the students through an assessment process. An average of about 50 students are chosen at each school, according to Duran. In the South Bay alone, there are about 550 students who benefit from the program every year, he said.

Students are paired up with a community volunteer for biweekly sessions that last a little less than an hour. There are four types of people who typically volunteer for 成人快播, Duran said. Retirees tend to be the most consistent tutors, followed by high school and college students and working professionals. Duran himself started as a site coordinator four years ago and worked his way up to project manager. 鈥淚鈥檝e been blessed to have been able to grow with this organization,鈥� he said.

Carla Neumann is entering her seventh year with 成人快播 and her first year at Cesar Chavez Elementary School in San Jose. She previously tutored at Los Arboles Elementary School and Robert F. Kennedy Elementary School, both in San Jose. Neumann, a San Jose resident, also works for Child Advocates of Silicon Valley, so she鈥檚 thinking about cutting back from five to three students this year.

鈥淭he tutoring started because I like working with kids,鈥� she said. 鈥淚 saw a blurb in the paper six or seven years ago, and I looked at that and said, 鈥楰ids are great; I like working with kids. I鈥檇 like to do that.鈥� The first year I ended up tutoring two or three kids twice a week.鈥�

Neumann starts her tutoring sessions by picking up her students鈥� files at the school and finding out where they left off. Then she鈥檒l usually pick up her students from their classroom, walk with them to a classroom dedicated for the 成人快播 program and have them pick out a book they want to read. If there鈥檚 time left over, she鈥檒l play a game like hangman with them.

鈥淭he program is just so easy,鈥� she said. 鈥淵ou don鈥檛 have to worry about anything. It鈥檚 all structured, so you鈥檙e bringing only your enthusiasm and wanting to work with these kids. Everything else is there鈥攖he materials, the lessons鈥攕o you don鈥檛 have to think through it. And it鈥檚 fun.鈥�

So fun, she said, that she鈥檚 had former students return to hang out with her in the 成人快播 room or just to get a hug. And that probably comes from her approach to reading. 鈥淚 want children to have fun reading,鈥� she said. 鈥淭o get them to think reading is fun and not a chore.鈥�

Back in the classroom at Mount Pleasant, Kevin and Max worked on yet one more craft activity before the end of their introductory meeting. They drew the covers of their favorite books. Kevin said his is the 1995 Dav Pilkey book, 鈥淭he Hallo-Wiener,鈥� about the adventures of Oscar the Dachshund. 鈥淚t鈥檚 funny and kind of scary,鈥� he said.

Though he finds reading challenging sometimes, because 鈥淚 can鈥檛 sound out the words,鈥� Kevin said he enjoys it all the same.

The program is seeking volunteers for the 2016-17 school year. To learn how to become a volunteer, visit readingpartners.org.