Read To Grow Program Teaches Literacy To Bartow Students

CARTERSVILLE, GA — The Bartow County School System is just a month into the 2018-19 school year, and they believe they've found the secret ingredient to literacy success in a new program called Read to Grow.

Six months ago, community members addressed their literacy concept with the Bartow County School Board, superintendent, and elementary school principals. The idea was simple; let us come into your classrooms and help the teacher where he or she sees fit. After careful consideration, planning, and training, more than 100 volunteers are ready to enter Bartow County classrooms starting Monday, Sept. 10.

“When our first-grade teachers heard about the program for the first time, many became teary-eyed because they know how much this community support will benefit our children,” said Kingston Elementary School Principal Philena Johnson.

During its inaugural year, volunteers will be working in first-grade classrooms at Allatoona, Clear Creek, Cloverleaf, and Kingston elementary schools. The schools, representative of the system's three feeder patterns, will receive support from our Read to Grow Council, which consists of Bartow County Chief Academic Officer David Chiprany, Cartersville-Bartow Chamber Board of Directors Chairman Janet Queen, Bartow Collaborative Executive Director Doug Belisle, Representative-Elect Matthew Gambill, and Bartow Baptist Association Associational Missionary David Franklin.

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“When this idea came to me from community leaders, the choice was clear,” said Bartow County School System Superintendent Dr. Phillip Page. “Every successful program I’ve ever been involved in was tightly woven with community support. We are excited to see our stakeholders so invested in raising the number of students reading on or above grade level. We are confident that we’ll receive more participation throughout the year and will be able to extend the program to reach more schools next year.”

Read to Grow volunteers will help double the individualized reading support inside classrooms. Volunteers will assist with one-to-one and small group reading, literacy games, and vocabulary.

“First-grade students are expected to have the most growth in foundational reading skills,” Principal Johnson added. “Students who fall behind during this critical year often struggle with reading during the rest of their school experience. Having the Read to Grow volunteers working with our teachers and students will provide our children with the best learning environment for mastering these foundational skills, ensuring that they become successful readers.”

Allatoona Elementary School Principal Jim Bishop said by the end of first grade, students should be able to read 47 words per minute with 90-percent accuracy.

“Over the last several years, an average of only 60 percent of our students have met that target," Bishop states. "My teachers have a game plan, and they are convinced that these volunteers are the secret ingredient to help push our students to the next level.”

Cloverleaf Elementary Principal Evie Barge notes the active community group is "giving action to words."

“Many adults will pat a child on the head and say you can do this, but this active community
group is giving action to words,” Barge said. “They are rolling up their sleeves and working with our teachers to help our students. This will give our students the confidence to believe in themselves, and then there is no stopping them.”

As with most programs, a funding source is needed to maintain success. With Read to Grow, money is needed to perform fingerprinting and background checks for each volunteer. David Franklin with the Bartow Baptist Association helped raise money to cover some of those costs and organize volunteers in the community.

“What an honor it has been to work with so many volunteers and a school system that cares about kids and helping them flourish,” said Franklin. “Read to Grow has amazing potential to make an incredible impact in our community and students’ lives for years to come.”

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