Posts Tagged ‘volunteers’
A Church Fights for the Future of it’s Community
An interview with Pastor Herman Greene, the founder of Lit Camp in North Portland, Oregon.
Pastor Greene has been an activist and community organizer in some of Portland’s most diverse neighborhoods for three decades. As a former educator, faith leader and civil rights advocate, Herman (alongside his family and church abundantlifepdx.com) have managed numerous programs around hunger, access, sports, mentoring and education.
Several years ago, Pastor Greene was exposed to the unique and transformative impact of literacy among underserved youth. With the assistance of a network of literacy friends, he and his community launched Lit Camp and has just completed their first cohort of young students, mentored by high school students from within the community and shepherded by church members and leaders from the Triple Threat mentoring program (https://www.triplethreatmentoring.com).
Pastor’s commitment led him to run and be elected to the Portland Public School Board so he could fight for the futures of all students in North Portland, while simultaneously building parallel literacy programs during school breaks to support academic excellence.
Read MoreALERT: Library of Congress to Show SENTENCED Documentary
Hear about the stunning procession of events that led the Librarian of Congress, Dr. Carla Hayden, to host a showing of the heart-breaking illiteracy documentary, SENTENCED, before many of the country’s most influential political, business and religious leaders in the Coolidge Auditorium at the Library of Congress. David Austin, Board Director of the Children’s Literacy Project, shares…
Read MoreHow to Become a Literacy Church
Please join this heartfelt discussion with Doug Kempton. Doug is the Pastor of Grace Community Church in Detroit, Michigan. This is a ‘nuts and bolts’ conversation about the structures and systems to launch, build and sustain a literacy outreach program in any church. Grace Community Church is an enthusiastic and successful Literacy Church. Doug has…
Read MoreEmpowering Volunteers with Jessica Bowersox, ED of SMART Reading
Jessica Bowersox became the Executive Director of SMART Reading in July 2022. She has been with the organization since 2010, as the Communications Director and later the Deputy Director. As a member of the organization’s executive leadership team for more than a decade, she has played an integral role in setting strategic vision for SMART and working with staff and board leadership to fulfill that vision.
Read MoreSpeaking with the Co-Director of SENTENCED: Connor Martin
Fall 2024 will mark the release of the new documentary on literacy called: SENTENCED. SENTENCED is an immersive and vulnerable exploration of the epidemic of childhood illiteracy through a series of braided character driven stories. Executive produced and narrated by 4x NBA basketball champion Stephen Curry, this film contributes to a movement that is designed to launch 1,000,000…
Read MoreNYC Experts Discuss Childhood Illiteracy Crisis
Enjoy this discussion about childhood illiteracy from a panel of experts from New York City. This conversation includes: Josiah Haken, the CEO of City Relief; Richard Rivera of I Have a Dream Foundation; Michael Coppotelli, of the Archdiocese of NYC; Mary Cantwell of Enriched NYC; Tony Kriz, Executive Producer of SENTENCED Andy Peterson of Doxology and a producer on SENTENCED…
Read MoreLiteracy for the Sake of Love and Justice with Doug Kempton
Doug has been married to Meg for 37 years. Father of four adventurous children and four (soon to be five) irresistible grandchildren. Founded Soar Detroit in 1998 serving Detroit children through sports and one on one prescription based literacy tutoring. Doug also serves as lead pastor at Grace Community church, a vibrant diverse church in the city of Detroit.
Soar Detroit provides literacy tutoring and sports to foster life-changing relationships and help kids flourish. Their long-term vision is to turn Detroit’s literacy rate upside down, promote a healthy community in the city, and see kids come to know Jesus.
Read MoreStephanie Korteweg Takes Under-Resourced Schools From Bottom Three to Top Three
Stephanie Korteweg is the founder and former director of STARS Book clubs in Waco, TX. Today she is on the local school board and gives her extra time to supporting national literacy movements.
Her work has been transformational in recruiting volunteers from faith communities and beyond. Her work in impoverished schools has been incredible: schools that ranked at the bottom in literacy became district literacy leaders.
Read MoreRecruiting Volunteers and Navigating Church/State
Today, TKR talks with Karen Vogelsang, the Executive Director of a formidable literacy organization outside of Memphis in Shelby County. Her enthusiasm for children is only outdone by her keen mind for navigating and succeeding in recruiting an army of reading mentors.
Karen is the Executive Director of ARISE2Read. Karen taught elementary school. She holds a Masters in Elementary Education and earned National Board Certification. Karen is the 2015 Tennessee Teacher of the Year. She received fellowships at Harvard’s Project Zero, Gates Foundation, Teach Plus, and Hope Street Group.
Read MorePoverty and Literacy with Dr. Donna M. Beegle
Dr Beegle was raised in poverty and illiterate until adulthood. Overcoming staggering odds, and the assistance of some unexpected neighbors, Donna not only escaped the cycles of generational poverty, but has since risen to become one of the world’s most sought after authorities on poverty.
In today’s episode Tony asks Donna the connection between poverty and failing in school, specifically the layered difficulty poor children carry everyday that keeps them from the life-transforming gift of reading.
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