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For over four decades, National Volunteer Week has given nonprofits an opportunity to recognize the invaluable support of volunteers that help fuel our work. In celebration of National Volunteer Week (April 15-21, 2018), we honor and celebrate the volunteers who make our communities stronger.

At Reading Partners, our volunteers provide vital literacy intervention tutoring to students at risk of falling behind. Each year, thousands of volunteers dedicate an hour or more of their time every week to help students become strong confident readers — a commitment that enables students to better prepare for learning in other subjects, like math and science. Ultimately, building a strong literacy foundation increases students’ chances of achieving their educational and career goals.

Reading Partners CEO, Karine Apollon, says,

This incredible work would not be possible without the hours volunteers provide in support of our students.

While each of our students benefits tremendously from time spent with their reading partners, the combined impact of our volunteers reaches far beyond the progress of individual students. Their contributions create stronger community connections, promote educational equity, provide cost savings for schools, and so much more.

5 ways volunteers strengthen communities and impact student growth

1. Volunteers drive student impact

Volunteers provide one-on-one literacy tutoring to more than 11,000 students across the US. Their support delivers meaningful results for kids: last year, nearly 90 percent of Reading Partners’ Kindergarten through second-grade students mastered key foundational reading skills needed to read at grade level.

2. By promoting educational equity, volunteers strengthen our communities

In the long run, everyone benefits when student literacy achievement is bolstered. Students who don’t read proficiently by fourth grade are four times more likely to drop out of school. It’s estimated that every student who walks out of the classroom without a diploma costs our society $260,000 in lost earnings, taxes, and productivity. Our volunteers tackle these issues at their core by empowering students to succeed during the earliest stages of education.   

3. Volunteers serve as a resource multiplier

Volunteers generously donate their time, making the Reading Partners program more affordable for schools compared to other literacy interventions with similar outcomes. For every $1 invested in Reading Partners, our program delivers more than $2 in resources to students.

4. Volunteers support strong public schools

Thanks to the involvement of over 13,000 community tutors, 98 percent of teachers report Reading Partners is valuable to their school and 90 percent of principals report improved school-wide reading progress.

5. Volunteers bring joy to learning

Students feed off of the energy and excitement of their reading partners. Ninety-five percent of our volunteers across the US are satisfied with their tutoring experience. That enthusiasm helps students develop a lifelong love of reading which is key to success in school and beyond.