AMERICA READS AT CLEMSON

Name: Barbara Weaver

College/Department: College of Health, Education, and Human Development; School of Education

Address: America Reads at Clemson University, School of Education, 207 Tillman Hall, Clemson, SC 29634-0702

Phone/email: 864-656-5094/ weaver2@clemson.edu

Name of Program: America Reads at Clemson University

Age Group of program participants: K-5 (elementary school age)

Is this program _______ in school, or _______ non-formal (I'm not sure what you mean by this. The program occurs during the after-school hours in the elementary schools. It is a formally recognized Clemson University and Federal work-study program that is implemented with the assistance of the principal, other administrators, and faculty at the elementary schools.)

Brief Description of the Program:

In May 1997, then President Clinton proposed that Federal work-study students serve as reading tutors to help all children read well by the end of the third grade. Studies have shown that sustained individualized attention and reading tutoring can raise reading levels significantly. As Richard Riley, former Secretary of the U. S. Department of Education explains, “The America Reads program promotes access to college by helping students finance post-secondary education costs while offering these same students the opportunity to pursue community service. This creates a win-win situation; young learners and communities gain from the services provided, and students (and the university) who might not ordinarily be able to share in the community service experience can now afford to be involved.”

Clemson University joined the America Reads Challenge by developing a program during the 1997/1998 academic year. The program consists of work-study and volunteer students, representing a wide range of disciplines from all five colleges at Clemson University. The America Reads program is directed by Barbara Weaver and is housed in the School of Education, College of Health, Education and Human Development. America Reads at Clemson University tutors work with students at Clemson Elementary School and Crosswell Elementary School (in Easley).

Young Tigers Sustain the Upstate is a project of America Reads at Clemson University. The project provides an opportunity for America Reads at Clemson University tutors and the K-5 children they tutor to explore sustainability issues in the Upstate of South Carolina, while strengthening the college students’ mentoring and tutoring skills and the K-5 children’s reading and writing skills. The tutors and the children read about recycling, native plants and wildlife, and water and fuel conservation; publish the K-5 children’s written reviews of the sources on the America Reads Web site; work on gardens at the two schools; and present the results of their work together at CommuniCon, a community poster session held each spring.

Funding sources are varied. Federal work-study money is used to pay work-study tutors. Annualized funding from Clemson University covers salaries and operational costs of the reading component of the program. Young Tigers Sustain the Upstate is funded through grants. This year, a grant from S.C. Leadership in Public Service is funding the tutors’ and children’s work to rehabilitate the stream through reading gardens at Clemson Elementary; and a grant from Landscapes for Learning is funding additional needs for the Clemson Elementary project and the installation of a Carolina Fence Garden at Crosswell Elementary. Last year, grants from Landscapes for Learning and Sustainable Universities Initiative funded a Young Tigers Sustain the Upstate preparatory project at Clemson Elementary. An annual gift from Microsoft Corporation funds CommuniCon each spring.