Partners Read Archives - WakeEd

WakeEd Partnership’s Partners Read Program Reaches Milestone, Surpasses Pre-COVID Numbers for Schools Served

WakeEd — Mon, 13 Feb 2023 13:40:00 +0000

RALEIGH, N.C. — Last Friday, more than 300 WakeEd Partnership’s (WakeEd) volunteers fanned out across Wake County to 60 elementary schools to read with struggling first grade readers as part of WakeEd’s Partners Read program. With 60 Wake County Public Schools System (WCPSS) elementary schools now part of Partners Read, the program officially surpassed the 57 schools being served pre-COVID.

“We’ve had this goal in mind since we were able to return to in-person volunteering, to meet and exceed the number of schools and students we were serving before Covid,” said Keith Poston, President, WakeEd Partnership. “In March 2020 most of our in-person programming was paused for nearly a year and a half and of course upon returning, our school partners were faced with many challenges as they adjusted to their new normal.” “It took some time build back, but it was worth the wait,” added Poston. “Our volunteers really missed reading with students and it’s great to see all the smiling faces again every Friday morning.”

Partners Read volunteers visit participating schools on Friday mornings up to 20 times during the school year. Not only does the student get to read along with a trained community volunteer, but they also receive a brand-new grade-level appropriate book each time. By the end of the year, they have up to 20 new books for their home libraries.

A study published in the Social Science Research journal found that the mere presence of a home library increases children\’s academic success, vocabulary development, attention, and job attainment. This same study examined 160,000 adults in 31 countries and found that the more books that were present in childhood homes, the more proficient they now were as adults in three important areas: literacy, math, and using technology to both communicate and gather and analyze information.

Partners Read is supported by generous donors to WakeEd Partnership including the ChildTrust Foundation, Delta Dental of North Carolina, UNC Rex Healthcare and Wake County Government.

If you’re interested in becoming a Partners Read school or a Partners Read volunteer, contact Programs Manager Taylor Cordes at tcordes@wakeed.org.

About WakeEd Partnership
WakeEd Partnership (WakeEd) is a business-backed nonprofit organization committed to supporting teachers and students in Wake County Public Schools. We’re an independent, nonprofit organization composed of business and community leaders committed to improving public education. Since 1983, the Partnership has advocated for excellent educational opportunities for all students in the Wake County Public School System. For more information, please visit www.wakeed.org.

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(Law) Partners Read in Wake County Schools

WakeEd — Thu, 01 Feb 2018 14:50:15 +0000

The discussion around workforce development often focuses on students\’ middle and high school experiences, but research suggests that student success can be predicted as early as grade three. From kindergarten to the third grade, students are learning to read, but when they arrive in the fourth grade, they are reading to learn. This means that students who are not reading on grade-level at the end of third grade are likely to fall behind in all school subjects – not just reading. In fact, children who fail to meet this critical milestone are four-times more likely to drop out of high school.

Since 2014, volunteers from the Wake County Bar Association (WCBA) have invested time and money in WakeEd\’s Partners Read program. Originally called \”Lawyers Read,\” Partners Read began in only a handful of schools, with the goal of helping first and second grade students gain confidence and enjoyment in reading. Four years later, more than 150 volunteers will be working with students in 31 WCPSS elementary schools.

One of those volunteers is Maria Lynch of Lynch & Eatman. In November of 2017, Maria received the Joseph Branch Professional Award, the highest honor given by the Wake County Bar Association, for her service to the Wake County community through programs like Partners Read. In this edition of WakeEd Insight, Maria shares some of her most memorable experiences with students at Stough Elementary School.

From Maria Lynch:
Most of the members of our small law firm participate in Partners Read at Stough Elementary School. We walk up to Stough together on Friday mornings, our cheap form of team building. The enthusiasm of the children is contagious, and all of us have seen improvement in their reading skills. We are particularly fortunate to have a great teacher assigned to the program, Jennifer Arnold, who is both very well organized and very dedicated.

The children often ask her when “their lawyers” are coming to read.

Each of us reads with two students throughout the year. During my first year, I read with two students who were both very excited to be included in the program. I received a sweet thank you note from both a parent and a student. On the back, the student drew illustrations of the books that we read together.

In my second year, I read with two students who really enjoyed reading. During our sessions, one student was often visited by his younger brother in kindergarten. This year, I am reading with his younger brother. My other student this year is a very shy girl who has come into her own and greets us exuberantly every week. Both of them like to stay and read through the session of the other.

I make a small-time investment and get a tremendously rewarding experience.

For the students there is the benefit of an improvement in reading skills, and when I am lucky, the development of a love for reading.

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WakeEd Engages Students and Teachers at Brentwood Elementary

WakeEd — Mon, 26 Jun 2017 17:43:23 +0000

By Robert Epler | Principal, Brentwood Magnet Elementary School of Engineering

WakeEd Partnership has provided Brentwood Magnet Elementary School of Engineering with invaluable support in the school’s mission to engage and empower every student engineer to achieve his or her potential. Two highlights of this partnership have been involvement with the SummerSTEM and Partners Read programs.

The SummerSTEM program allowed two Brentwood Magnet Elementary School teachers, Mr. Greg Eyman and Ms. Kimberly Ratliff, to immerse themselves in the work of STEM-focused businesses and organizations. This experience informed their work as they collaboratively crafted a Project Based Learning unit that successfully engaged students in innovative and relevant learning. The unit, titled “Brentwood’s Backyard,” enabled fourth grade student engineers to explore an area ecosystem, research an animal and its habitat, and create a 3D-printed product based on the animal; it culminated in raising awareness and funding for a charity that could benefit that animal. During the unit, students used a camera trap to collect visual data of animals on school grounds. Through a STEM Expo the school connected with eMammal, which provided the school with access to both the camera trap and a guest-speaker visit from a scientist working at the North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences. Students created their animal-themed products (such as a deer ring and raccoon necklace) on a 3D printer that was purchased through an Idea Crucible grant, also courtesy of WakeEd Partnership. To aid in considering marketing for their products, students took a field trip to CW22’s TV studio, to watch how professionals engage in planning, writing, shooting, and editing a commercial for products or services; this field trip was made possible through a connection established at another WakeEd Partnership event, the STEM and Global Studies World Café.

In addition to support for Project Based Learning, WakeEd Partnership’s Partners Read program enabled Brentwood Magnet Elementary School to benefit from community involvement in reading; the school hosted volunteers from Sinclair Broadcasting who read with first grade students on a weekly basis. The volunteers enthusiastically encouraged a love of reading and built reading confidence with their partner students. The enjoyment students experienced in reading with their mentors was clearly evident, and students simply could not wait for their Partners Read time each week.

Because of WakeEd Partnership’s support with resources and community connections, students at Brentwood Magnet Elementary School have been able to fully engage in innovative and relevant learning opportunities that help them become collaborative, creative, effective communicators and critical thinkers.

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WakeEd Grants Wishes at York Elementary

WakeEd — Tue, 04 Apr 2017 14:36:46 +0000

By Meg Osterhoff | STEM Coordinator/Coach | York Elementary School

\”When you wish upon a star, makes no difference who you are, anything your heart desires will come to you…\” or at least that\’s what happened to us when WakeEd Partnership linked up with York Elementary School. WakeEd Partnership is an incredible organization that allows your dreams to become reality. We were the lucky recipients of not only one but two Teacher Innovation Grants. This allowed our school to gain access to the latest technology that was being used to teach STEM at home! One of our goals as a school was to be on the forefront of the latest research and design projects for students that would accelerate them forward. Students have latched onto these technologies and love manipulating them. We couldn\’t have done this without our partnership!

Not only does WakeEd offer Teacher Innovation Grants, but they also created SummerSTEM. SummerSTEM is an insightful week full of immersion and excitement. Teachers are partnered with businesses in order to create project-based learning (PBL) STEM units based on skills seen in the immersion. Teachers integrate these units into their curriculum to showcase authentic, real-life experiences in the workplace. Students work on projects in teams in order to answer driving questions and problem-solve for solutions.

My teachers have another PBL unit to implement in their classrooms because I was able to attend SummerSTEM. Student engagement is at an all-time high and one of the companies with whom we partnered during the summer has come to York to judge many of our engineering competitions! That\’s just one small impact that this teacher immersion experience has had on our school. The ripple effect of this program is in the works, with more and more teachers creating PBL STEM units inspired by this opportunity.

Proud to have 8 of our staff volunteering for @wakeedpa\’s Partners Read program on Fridays to help children improve their reading skills! pic.twitter.com/1wKx147Q9J

— Delta Dental of NC (@DeltaDentalNC) March 3, 2017

As if that wasn\’t enough, WakeEd also partners with York Elementary School to do \”Partners Read,\” a volunteer-based program where business volunteers come to York each Friday to read with students at school. We are pleased to have Delta Dental of North Carolina along with retired WCPSS teachers reading with our students each week. This allows the community to build relationships with the school as well as the students in it. Students read with their partner and then are given books to build their library at home, which builds their fluency and comprehension skills while at school.

WakeEd is one of those all-around organizations that makes all your dreams come true. If it weren\’t for WakeEd Partnership, our school would be at a loss when it comes to receiving grants, partnering with local companies, as well as encouraging and facilitating opportunities for teacher professional development through SummerSTEM. We are very blessed to have WakeEd as part of our school community!

Engineering fair success! @YorkESBulldogs Thank U to our amazing judges @RedHatNews @precisionlender Come back anytime! @STEM_WCPSS @WCPSS pic.twitter.com/AaYJCVjZSs

— Engineering Coach (@york_engineers) February 24, 2017

Special thanks to @thecw22 for coming to @YorkESBulldogs! We loved hearing about marketing, production, & leadership skills! @STEM_WCPSS pic.twitter.com/Vj4rIrPs7g

— Engineering Coach (@york_engineers) March 14, 2017

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