So, we've already covered my personal reasons for running the Boston Marathon. Let's explore another reason - the biggest reason: Boston Partners in Education.
Training for a marathon and fundraising for an organization are both tasks that will be new and difficult for me. It will be taxing on the body and on the mind. I would not, could not do this for an organization that I didn't stand behind. I truly believe in what Boston Partners in Education does and what it will continue to do for Boston's public school students.
So, who is Boston Partners in Education (BPE) and what do we do? BPE has a full-time staff of 15 and one part-time employee in the office. Last year our staff supported almost 6,000 students and 914 volunteers in 69 schools in Boston.
Our programming reaches students in grades K-12. We have a specialty math program, Math Rules! for students in grades 3-5. Math Rules! is for students who just need a little bit more in class support. Volunteers often stay with their student for the duration of the program creating a powerful bond. Last year was the biggest year yet for Math Rules! serving 173 students.
We also have a specialty program for students in grade 1-3 called Power Lunch. Power Lunch is a corporate read aloud program where volunteers from local corporation come into the school once a week to read to students on their lunch break. In 2008-2009 320 volunteers were able to commit a lunch break to reading to their respective student. Power Lunch volunteers are also encouraged to commit to the program for three years, mentoring their student throughout elementary school.
The Big Cheese Reads is our fundraising initiative, and is close to my heart being that it is the program that I work on. The Big Cheese Reads invites corporate, community, and civic leaders into 6-8 grade classes to emphasize the important link between literacy and career success. Last year we had 73 "Big Cheeses" speak to students.
Our School Volunteer Program is our biggest program serving 3,872 students in 2008-2009. We recruit, train, and support volunteers in both math and English Language Arts for students in grades K-12. Our School Volunteers commit a collective total of 23,816 hours a school year to our students!
While we do have solid evidence of the positive influence our volunteers have on our students academically (which you should check out on our website), such as increased test scores and increased GPAs, the most empowering part of being a mentor is the impact you have on a student's life. The relationship and bond that is made over the years of mentoring has the power to change the life of a student and a volunteer. Students report feeling more confident in their studies as well amongst their peers. Volunteers who take a break from work often return feeling more relaxed. This is what we strive to do - support our volunteers and most importantly support the students struggling in the Boston Public Schools.
Basically, I think we're great.
1 comment:
I think BPE is great too! And being a public school employee and I can't tell you how imperitive volunteers are to our work(especially trained ones!) to help struggling students. In Boston Public Schools, there are a lot of students to help, a lot of students who haven't grown up with the support from home many of us had. Thanks for running, working, and fund-raising for such a fabulous organization!:)
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