Practicing What We Preach
Foundation Staff Give Time and Teaching to Local School Children

By Kathleen Malliarakis

"I'm so proud of myself," said Sarah, a student in Ms. Ganthier's first-grade class at Watkins Mill Elementary School in Gaithersburg, Md. Sarah, along with 18 of her peers, received certificates of achievement for their participation in a pilot tutoring program to improve basic math, spelling, and oral language skills. Jointly supported by the Points of Light Foundation and Watkins Mill, the program allowed pre-selected students to receive intensive tutoring from Foundation staff volunteers.

"Working at the national level, we don't always get the chance to participate in direct service opportunities. This program gave us the chance to go local," said Stephanie Endsley, AmeriCorps*VISTA (Volunteers in Service to America), Earned Income Tax Credit/Asset Development.

Reed Dewey, Corporate Partnership Development director, added, "This program allowed me to help out with something beyond myself… and to live the values that we [the Points of Light Foundation] promote."

During an eight-week period between March and May, Chris Toppe, Senior Social Scientist and program co-founder, organized 18 staff members who used monthly volunteer hours, a benefit provided to all Foundation employees, to participate. The volunteers quickly formed a warm rapport with the first-graders. "I enjoyed my interaction with the children because I got to see the world from their point of view," said Gwen Haynes, AmeriCorps*VISTA, Faith Initiatives.

Helaine Cohen, a first-grade teacher at Watkins Mill and a co-founder of the pilot program, explained, "The students responded well to individual attention and looked forward to the volunteers coming. We [the teachers] saw the volunteers as positive role models for students."

Pre- and post-test scores indicate that the program was a success. Over the eight-week period, participating students increased their competencies in the three subject areas. Because of the program's success, IBM and the Montgomery County Volunteer Center plan on implementing the program countywide this fall.

Not only did the students make measurable gains in spelling and math, they have retained what they learned. One week after the volunteers left, one boy in the program stated to no one in particular, "I can learn," and a girl in the program responded, "I learned to spell here... h-e-r-e." Other students that heard her spell the word started to clap.