THE ACADEMIC CORNER
Students Continue to Benefit from AmeriCorps Program

For the second year in a row, students at Washington-Wilkes Elementary School are benefiting from the AmeriCorps Tutorial Program. Forty one fourth and fifth graders are currently being tutored in reading and /or math based on their identified needs. This year, the majority of the students selected for the program will be tutored individually.

Mrs. Lucille Lawrence returns to us as the AmeriCorps tutor, and works under the supervision of Mrs. Janet Pharr, WWES Instructional Specialist. The AmeriCorp Tutorial Program is supported by Communities In Schools of Georgia (CISGA). In Washington, Mrs. Carolyn Reynolds manages the CISGA program. An AmeriCorps tutor is also in place this year at Washington-Wilkes Middle School.

AmeriCorps members must direct eighty percent of their participation to direct service activities and twenty percent to professional learning and other training specific to their assignment. Mrs. Lawrence, like other AmeriCorps members across the nation, is expected to encourage a spirit of civic engagement and volunteerism by planning, participating, and supporting service projects in their community. Last spring, due to her outstanding work with the program, Mrs. Lawrence was merited with a visit from the National AmeriCorps representative! The WWES program was one of only two in the state of Georgia to receive this recognition.

The WWES students who Mrs. Lawrence works with fall into two categories: those who need additional assistance with reading and math skills and those who have English as their second language. Students from both categories were selected by their teachers based on scores from various promotion criteria used at the school, namely the Georgia Criterion Reference Competency Test (CRCT).

Each tutoring session places intense emphasis on reading and math skills work that is specific to the needs of the individual student. Student progress is monitored throughout the grading period and then again at the end of the period. Although the achievement gains on these selected tests are certainly worth bragging about, nothing can compare with the pride and selfconfidence being experienced by our WWES students as they benefit from this valuable tutoring opportunity.

Reader Comments

No comments have been posted. Be the first!

Other Stories With Comments:
Article	Comments
The Office Cat	2
Neighborhood vandalism is out of control	1
The Office Cat	1
Drug problem growing; little is being done	1
The Office Cat	1
Family escapes death in semi hit-and-run	1
Feed a family of four for $10 a week	1