The Greater Boston Jewish Coalition for Literacy: Creating Building Blocks for the Future
By
Transformations
Spring 2007
"As an architect, I relate literacy to the foundation of a building," says Hans D. Strauch, Principal at HDS Architecture, Inc. "If you have a foundation which is broken or not laid properly, you don't build a building on it. The Greater Boston Jewish Coalition for Literacy has taken a national lead to help improve literacy skills in children at a critical time in their development," says Hans, who has been supporting the program each and every year since it started a decade ago. Hans, Co-president of The Mosse Foundation, was committed to ensuring the future of the Literacy Program and decided to make the lead gift to establish the CJP Literacy Endowment Fund.
The Greater Boston Jewish Coalition for Literacy (GBJCL), a partnership between the Jewish Community Relations Council and Combined Jewish Philanthropies, was created in response to President Clinton's 1996 America Reads challenge. At the heart of the GBJCL is a volunteer corps from more than 60 organizations, synagogues and day schools, tutoring more than 1,200 students—from kindergarten through third grade—in Boston-area schools. Forty of these organizations have tutoring teams that are partnered with a particular public school. Volunteers commit to a minimum of tutoring one hour a week for a year, though the average commitment is three years. Several volunteers are even completing their 10th year with the program.
"There is something profound about sharing a book with a child," says Allyson Jaffe, Team Leader for the Lucy Stone School in Dorchester, who has been volunteering with GBJCL for five years. "I used to be a first grade teacher at he Potter Road School in Framingham and we had two tutors from the program in our classroom. When I left to start a family, I thought volunteering for the program would be a great way to continue working with children. The kids are so excited to see their tutors. They feel loved and wanted and cared for and, as a volunteer, you are playing a role in their development. It's a beautiful relationship."
Teachers and staff at the partner schools select students who are in need of extra reading assistance. For many of these children, this weekly tutoring session is the only individualized help they receive at school or at home.
"The GBJCL program makes a tremendous difference to our children," says Albert Taylor, Principal of the Mozart School in Boston, which is partnered with Temple Beth Shalom in Needham. "When you have a class of more than 20 students, it's hard to devote time to the kids who need additional reading practice," he says. "The program is so solid that we add it to our Individual Student Success plans when someone scores a low level on MCAS and requires extra support."
According to statistics from the National Education Association, 40 percent of third graders in the United States cannot read at their grade level—an alarming statistic that has widespread implications. Substandard literacy skills prevent people from developing to their full potential, limiting their professional and personal growth. The tutoring partnerships of GBJCL have been successful in part because the program provides early intervention when literacy deficits are easier to overcome.
To date, JCRC's Literacy Program has been funded through annual targeted gifts, putting the program at risk, should there be a shortfall of support in any given year. The creation of the endowment will ensure the continuity of this program and its impact on our community. "The decision to help endow the GBJCL was such an easy sell for me because it has such far-reaching consequences," says Hans, who was also instrumental in securing endowment funds from the Hans and Margret Rey/Curious George Fund of 2001. The total endowment goal is $2 million.
"I am also very confident in how the funds are being managed. The performance of the CJP Jewish Community Endowment Pool is strong and competitive and it is being invested extremely efficiently," he says. "I encourage others to seriously consider investing in the program—it may be the most important thing we can do for our society in the long run."
To find out more about endowing the Greater Boston Jewish Coalition for Literacy, please contact Helaine Cohen Ahem, Vice President, Development, at helainea@cjp.org or 617-457-8560.
