As Reading Corps begins its second decade of working to support students in Wisconsin, a new state-wide advisory board has launched to focus on scaling our impact. The board comprised of Wisconsin-based education experts and advocates is committed to boosting student achievement across the state.
Building on Success and Meeting Urgent Needs
In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, Wisconsin students continue to face significant challenges in reading proficiency, with only 33% achieving grade level proficiency by the end of third grade. Reading Corps tutoring has made a difference for tens of thousands of students and can help address this pressing issue going forward. In the 23-24 school year, over 300 Reading Tutors served nearly 7,000 students in schools throughout Wisconsin. Collectively they conducted almost half a million tutoring sessions in one year alone!
Those sessions made a real impact: Of all the students tutored, 68% demonstrated growth above their targets! The new Wisconsin Advisory Board is committed to expanding students’ access to tutoring and ensuring everyone in the state has the greatest chance to succeed.
“The new advisory board is primarily to help bring awareness to Reading Corps and its success as a program,” Ann McCotter told the Green Bay Press-Gazette at the board’s launch.
McCotter is an advisory board member and one of the leaders of Oneida Reads, a literacy campaign working to help every Oneida student reach reading proficiency by third grade. Both Oneida Reads and the new advisory board aim to leverage the power of Reading Corps to help Wisconsin students get ahead for a fraction of the cost of many other interventions.
“We know this solution works, as independent research has shown that students tutored through Reading Corps make greater gains and faster progress,” says Itzel Galindo, Executive Director of Wisconsin Programs and leader of the new board. “When students work with a tutor, incredible things happen. They often make more than a year’s progress during the school year.”
Greater Impact and Awareness Across Wisconsin
The Wisconsin Advisory Board will work with partners around the state to increase the reach of Reading Corps so more educators, parents, and policymakers will understand the program’s mission and proven record of success. The board will also help develop an educator pipeline to get more tutors on track to becoming licensed teachers. Wisconsin is facing a major educator shortage, and the in-school experience of serving as a tutor can be a great springboard for future educators. The group will also explore options to bolster funding to support serving more schools and students.
Wisconsin Advisory Board Members
- Tatjana Bicanin, Executive Director, Building Our Future
- Sheila Briggs, Principal Consultant, Education First
- Andrew Davis, VP of Government Affairs, Metropolitan Milwaukee Association of Commerce
- Itzel Gallindo, Executive Director of Wisconsin Programs
- William Hughes, Consultant, Hughes Strategic Group
- Ann McCotter, Organizational Development Specialist, Oneida Reads
- Michelle Miller, Family Services Manager, Oneida Nation
- Jim Renzelmann, Coordinator of Instructional Services, Sheboygan Area School District
- Jeff Rosen, Grants Director, Bader Philanthropies
A Brighter Future for Wisconsin Students
As Reading Corps looks forward to its next decade of success in Wisconsin, we’re so grateful to have the advisory board as an advocate for our tutors and the students they serve. “This advisory board will have a positive impact on Wisconsin students and their families,” says Galindo. “We have the best and brightest minds focused on lifting reading proficiency so everyone can have strong futures.”
Whether you’re in Wisconsin or one of our other partner states, you can help students in your community. The tutor application for the 25-26 school year opens March 17. To find opportunities near you, visit join.readingandmath.org.