COACHING SERVICES
Our Goal is to work with African American students in K-4th grade in reading and English whose reading proficiency is below basic for their grade, by providing FREE weekly individual reading intervention coaching in communities after-school programs or schools during the day.
These services are offered free to families. Funding is provided by generous foundations and individuals who have come alongside us to provide these services. We are thankful to all who have contributed to Literacy and Hope. We couldn't do it without you.
Our goal is to reach 100 students by 2030. We will work with organizations who can fund our services as well.
WHY READING INTERVENTION?
Reading is fundamental to independency & life success
K-3RD IS LEARNING TO READ AND K-12TH IS READING TO LEARN.
It is a fundamental principle of equity that all students deserve access to quality education. While school test scores are not a perfect representation of quality education, they are an indicator of performance relative to accepted academic norms. Today, based on this indicator, many black students in St. Louis do not have enough or equal access to schools with a track record of preparing students to meet state standards on standardized school tests.
Schools, where students do not meet standards, are struggling to prepare children to succeed in life. When teachers begin a school year with students who have not mastered skills they should have learned in earlier grades, they don’t get to teach at their grade level, impacting students' morale and effectiveness.
We will focus mainly on students’ grades from kindergarten to third grade. Today, 67% of students and 82% of low-income students can't read at grade level by the end of third grade. That's when you are supposed to go from learning to read to reading to learn. It's America's number one education crisis and we want to partner with schools and families to reverse these statistic.
MORE ABOUT OUR PROGRAM
Mullanphy Coach
Our Reading Intervention Program focuses on the science of reading (letters, phonics, phonemic awareness, sight words, and comprehension), building self-esteem (When students feel more confident in their ability to succeed in school, their overall confidence will increase.), Neuroscience (The principles of neuroscience will help students concentrate, regulate their emotions, and retain information.), and relationship building (Building strong relationships with students is key to boosting achievement.)
- Our program is offered free to families via grants and donors.
- We provide one-on-one services for one hour twice a week.
- Our program last for the entire school year.
- Our program mainly works with after-school programs but is open to work with students during the school day.
- Each student is assessed to ascertain their level of proficiency and to determine where they need to start in our program. Additional assessments are done in the winter & Spring.
- Our program is not a cookie cutter program. We assess these students three times a year to determine mastery, growth in proficiency, and pivot if needed.
- Formative assessments are done throughout our program to determine progress.
- We also make recommendations to the school for any student that we feel needs an IEP.
- We hire coaches (tutors) that are committed to working with students for the entire school year. We do not utilize volunteers as coaches(tutors).
- Students, Parents, and Teachers all have an opportunity to evaluate our program.
KIDS CANNOT LEARN IF THEY HAVE NOT LEARNED TO READ!
OUR PROGRAM PARTNERS
Mullanphy Coach with Student
Literacy and Hope is proud to announce that we have been working with two incredible schools (Mullanphy and Momentum Academy) since our launch in 2024-2025 school year. We are excited about our new partnership with Midtown Community Services which starts in 2026/2027 school year.
We participate in these schools after-school program. They identify students in their after-school program who are reading below grade proficiency, and we assess them to determine proficiency level and design a curriculum to meet their individual needs.
Our students are genuinely excited to meet with their coach twice each week. They often arrive to their sessions before we can even get the room ready. We’re also hearing from many other students who say they struggle with reading and are eager for support. Demand continues to grow, with additional students expressing that they struggle with reading and would benefit from our services.
We are seeking additional funding to hire more coaches to address this growing demand. Although volunteers are wonderful, we prioritize consistent, structured support, which is why we depend on our trained team rather than volunteer staffing.
OUR STUDENTS ARE MAKING SIGNIFICANT PROGRESS
HEAR WHAT OTHERS ARE SAYING ABOUT US
I am pleased to recommend the Literacy and Hope Reading Intervention Program, which has significantly benefited our students in Mullanphy’s After-Care. This program has not only improved literacy skills but has also fostered a love for reading among our students.
One of the standout aspects of the program is its dedicated tutors. They are not only knowledgeable and skilled, but also incredibly friendly and encouraging. Their punctuality and professionalism ensure a consistent and positive learning environment for students. The tutors’ approachability and enthusiasm make reading sessions enjoyable and effective, helping students build confidence and motivation.
We wholeheartedly endorse the Literacy and Hope Reading Intervention Program and believe it is an invaluable resource for any educational setting.
I just want to take a moment to express how incredibly proud I am of my daughter and how far she has come. This progress has truly been life-changing for her, and I couldn’t be more grateful. Kathy and Kim have been absolutely amazing throughout this journey—their dedication, patience, and support have made all the difference. I sincerely appreciate everything they have done to help my daughter succeed.
Seeing her thrive like this means so much to me, and I’m beyond thankful that she has had the opportunity to work with such wonderful people. This experience has been the best help for her, and I’m so proud of all she has accomplished.
Thank you so much for helping Vanessa. what this services means to us is everything because they help her in being herself and definitely helps her learn. We really appreciate y’all helping her learn how to read that means everything to me because I struggle with this when I was a kid.
