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A literacy program in Chicago has become part of the solution rather than the problem.
Open Books, founded by former businesswoman Stacy Ratner, began sending out volunteers four years ago to local schools in order to assist children with their reading and empower them to take charge of their lives :
"If you can't read the bus schedule, how are you going to get to work? If your kids don't know how to read, how are they going to grow up to have the kind of lives that they want to have," Ratner said. In the United States, just 33 percent of 4th graders are on par with their reading level or better, while 22 percent of adults are said to be entirely illiterate.
Ratner decided to do something about these statistics and has seen her volunteers grow to 3,000 and her book collection has ballooned to more than 50,000. Most importantly, though, the children touched by Ratner's program have seen a major improvement in their reading levels.
At the local Bronzeville Lighthouse Charter School, participating students have seen their reading speeds increase from 20 words per minute to 62 words per minute, and Ratner's strategy is simple: In addition to an online mentoring program, volunteers serve as tutors in the classroom. Students are required to both write and read in class, and for all the kids who volunteer to read their stories aloud, they get to wear a pencil costume.
The kids involved in this reading program are not only excited about reading but also enthusiastic about school.
With all of the talk these days about failing students and dead-end schools, Ratner stands as a beacon of light that should be followed and studied. She is only one person, but with her positive works, she has been able to impact more than 2,000 kids.
What a hero.
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