Young readers recognized for the work helping their siblings

The Read to Me Project recognized more than 500 students throughout different schools in the Alisal Union School District for their work reading to their siblings at home.

Last October, more than 500 4th, 5th and 6th grade students in  Oscar F. Loya, Martin Luther King Jr., Alisal Community, Bardin, Monte Bella and Virginia Rocca Barton elementary schools made a commitment to read aloud to their siblings ages 8 months to five years at home throughout the 2015-2016 school year. The students were taught about the early brain development, the importance of reading to young children and were coached on “The 9 Best Ways to Read to Young Children.”

Classroom teachers were provided with guidelines and information to help motivate student participation and facilitate the Project’s success.

Read to Me Project students received a certificate and books to encourage continued reading to their siblings during the summer. The goal for every student is to read to younger brothers and sisters at least one hundred days during the school year. Students who achieved the goal received a “Super Star” medal in addition to the Certificate during the ceremony.

Research has shown that the more language and vocabulary children are exposed to at an early age, the greater their academic success in school. Read to Me has been developed in order to increase exposure of low income young children to books and the love of reading.

Salinas Valley Grows Readers -- an event for the entire family

Read to Me Project  will host its first “Salinas Valley Grows Readers”, an admission-free festival for families from 12 noon to 3 pm Sunday at The First Tee campus on 1551 Beacon Hill Drive, Salinas.

Children will have the chance to meet Clifford the Big Red Dog and other favorite storybook characters, sing and dance to live music, take a spin around the musical book walk to win a prize, There will also be stories and free book giveaways, a raffle for a chance to win additional gifts, and more.

Let's grow readers, shall we?

AmeriCorps struggling to get reading tutors

As the school year gets underway, there is an urgent need for reading tutors in Monterey County. AmeriCorps Monterey County United for Literacy is seeking tutors to read with students at schools in Salinas, Soledad, King City and Greenfield.

Jamie Valenzuela-Mumau, assistant superintendent for educational services, said there are still eight positions left to be filled -- out of 30. Four of those positions are in the Alisal Union School District, three in Soledad, and one in King City.

Tutors serve at least 40 hours a week, providing one-on-one or small group reading instruction to students in kindergarten through fourth grade. Tutoring sessions take place during and after school.

The program begins September 1, 2015 and runs for 11 months, ending July 31, 2016.

Valenzuela-Mumau said the program struggles to find candidates every year, and he believes it could be due to the size of the allowance -- $13,000 a year is not much. And the teacher shortage is probably not helping.

"We’re just looking for people qualified and willing to do the help," he said. "But it also sheds light (on the fact that) finding good people to work with our kids is difficult, not just in Monterey County but across the state."

AmeriCorps members receive a monthly living stipend of $1,210  for 11 months, a Segal Education Award of $5,550 upon successful completion of 1,700 tutoring hours, and student loan forbearance while serving.

Applicants must have graduated from high school or received a GED certificate. A Bachelor’s or Associate's Degree is preferred. Experience working with children or in education is helpful, although tutors will receive training and orientation.

AmeriCorps Monterey County United for Literacy is a program operated by the Monterey County Office of Education. The program’s mission is to enable Monterey County children to read well and independently by the end of the third grade so they can read to learn in the fourth grade and beyond.

Candidates may submit an application by visiting the program website here or here. Email Ginny Brown at gbrown@monterey.k12.ca.us for further information.

* This post was updated on Aug. 25 to include comments from  Jamie Valenzuela-Mumau.

Tutors Needed for AmeriCorps Monterey County literacy project

AmeriCorps Monterey County United for Literacy is seeking tutors to read with students at schools in Salinas, Soledad, King City and Greenfield. The program’s mission is to enable Monterey County children to read well and independently by the end of the third grade so they can read to learn in the fourth grade and beyond.

Tutors serve at least 40 hours a week, providing one-on-one or small group reading instruction to students in kindergarten through fourth grade. Tutoring sessions take place during and after school.

The program begins September 1, 2015 and runs for 11 months, ending July 31, 2016.

AmeriCorps members receive a monthly stipend of $1,210 for 11 months, a Segal Education Award of $5,550 upon successful completion of 1,700 tutoring hours, and student loan forbearance while serving.

Applicants must have graduated from high school or received a GED certificate. A Bachelor’s or Associate's Degree is preferred. Experience working with children or in education is helpful, although tutors will receive training and orientation.

AmeriCorps Monterey County United for Literacy is a program operated by the Monterey County Office of Education.

Candidates may submit an application by visiting the program website here and or here. Email eortiz@monterey.k12.ca.us for further information.

Monterey County libraries are seeking literacy program tutors

Twenty five percent of adults in Monterey County struggle to read a prescription label, fill out a job application, or help their children with homework. And folks at the Monterey County Free Libraries are offering you a way to do something about it.

Volunteers are needed throughout the county to help others learn how to read. New volunteers may join the program at any point during the year by registering for the libraries' new tutor training.

The next two part orientation-and-new-tutor training will be held in the Monterey Peninsula. Attendance at both sessions is required for new tutors.

Part I: Tuesday, January 20, 6-830 pm at Marina Branch Library, 190 Seaside Circle, Marina.

Part II: Thursday, January 22, 6-830 pm at Seaside Branch Library, 550 Harcourt Avenue, Seaside.

For more information or to register for training, call 831-883-7597, or email AndrewsCS@co.monterey.ca.us on or after January 2nd, 2015.

Monterey County libraries need litercy tutors

Did you know there are more than 100 people in Monterey County waiting for a literacy tutor?

Help change someone's life by becoming a tutor with the Monterey County Free Libraries Literacy Program. Find out more about being a tutor on the library website here and attend new tutor training sessions September 8th and 10th.


Or call 831 883-7597 for more information.

The Literacy Summit: the first step on a long road ahead

If you attended the Literacy Summit, thank you!

If you didn't, you missed a very informative event. Although we heard from people who are near and dear to Monterey County -- Sylvia Panetta and CSUMB President Eduardo Ochoa, for instance -- there were also newcomers to the community and great experts in the issue of demographics and literacy.

The aim of the Literacy Campaign of Monterey County was to bring speakers who would discuss the issues of low-levels of literacy in Monterey County -- and the nation for that matter. As many of you already know, we face great challenges in our community as we try to educate our young and prepare them for an economically productive future. Only about a third of third graders in Monterey County score proficient or above in English language arts, and experts believe students start falling behind after the third grade if they don't read proficiently.

Francine Rodd, executive director of First Five Monterey County, made a presentation about how the learning has to start even earlier: as soon as babies are born, or when they're still in the womb. The first few years of a child's life are critical for brain development, and if mothers don't read to their children or don't engage with them, the children will have a hard time catching up later, according to a video presented by Rodd.

But the most compelling presentation -- in my opinion -- came from USC Demographer Dowell Myers: today's babies are tomorrow's taxpayers. If these children don't grow up to be educated adults, they won't be able to hold productive lifestyles, and they won't be able to support the retiring generation. They won't be able to pay into Medicare and Social Security to support the older generations, they won't earn enough to buy the homes, the "nest eggs" of retiring boomers.

Helping the next generation is not altruism. It's self-interest.

In order for the next generation to be productive, we need to help our children now. Better child care needs to be available. More programs for young parents to help them raise their children. A movement to make literacy Monterey County's first priority.

Friday's even was a great first step. At the end of the day, attendants chatted in small groups about what they're willing to do to promote literacy. There was a lot of enthusiasm and energy in the group, so it'll be interesting to see what ideas come to life.

Here's a snippet from Dowell Myers presentation. Enjoy!

A personal plea for literacy

If you did not read the story I wrote for Sunday's edition of The Herald, I urge you to do so.

It's called "Third-Grade Literacy is Key for Later Success," and it tackles the thorny issue of our literacy shortcomings in Monterey County -- and nationwide. You can find it here.

Here's where my plea comes in: please join us this Friday for an important event. The Literacy Summit will gather Monterey County folks interested in seeing literacy levels go up as a way to help everyone improve our standards of living. Increased literacy is linked to better health outcomes, higher incomes, and better lifestyles over all. Children who enjoy reading enjoy school have a higher chance to stay in it for the long run. Communities where children attend school regularly and find healthy after school activities -- like reading a book -- have less crime.

But promoting literacy is something we should all embrace, and that's why I'd love to see you at Friday's event. The event is designed for all of us to learn more about why this is important and how we can become more involved and help.

If you've already signed up, thank you. If not, please consider attending.

For more information about the Literacy Campaign, or to sign up for the summit, click here. 

On literacy, childhood education, and the future of Monterey County

The numbers are not very encouraging. In Monterey County, two out of every three children do not read proficiently by the end of third grade, the year when they are making the important transition from "learning to read" to "reading to learn." And we all know how important it is to read for our future prospects as wage-earners.

Two out of every three are low income. In the Salinas Valley, the numbers are even more dire.

Members of the Monterey County Children's Council lay it all out for the Monterey County Board of Supervisors in this video.  The annual report starts around minute 20.

Well, the demographic reality is not very rosy, and you probably know some of it already. The good news is, there's many community leaders trying to push initiatives aimed at making a difference.

And I'm going to tell you about one that's near and dear to me. The Literacy Summit.

On Oct. 25, we're all going to have a chance to hear from top demographer Dowell Myers about the importance of having our children read at grade level by the time they're in third grade. It's our future we're talking about. And he'll make a compelling case during the Literacy Summit. We at the Literacy Campaign for Monterey County (yours truly is a board member) are hoping to inspire many community members to get involved in our effort.

So please join us on Oct. 25. Here's more details. You'll also have a chance to hear more about what else other community members are doing to improve the lives of our children and the future of our community.

See you on Oct. 25!

Gathering ideas to boost literacy in Monterey County

The Literacy Service Providers Network of Monterey County will host Symia Stigler of Sacramento at its monthly meeting Tuesday, April 30.

Stigler will discuss the process Sacramento is using to develop and implement its 10-year plan to have all their third graders at grade-level reading.

Stigler will outline how Sacramento READS! and the stakeholders in Sacramento were able to draft, organize and implement a Third Grade Literacy Campaign as a ten year initiative with a vision of making Sacramento the first city in the country to have every third grader reading on grade level by the end of third grade.

It promises to be an interesting presentation, particularly as Monterey County gears up its literacy campaign. With the recent hiring of Ron Eastwood to lead the organization, there are already several major events planned for this year. Like the Sacramento campaign, the main goal of the Literacy Campaign for Monterey County is to have all children achieve literacy by the third grade. (Fully disclosure: I'm on the board of directors of the campaign, and very excited about how we're moving forward).

The monthly meeting will take place from 11:30 a.m to 1 p.m. Tuesday, April 30, at the conference room, of the Salinas City Elementary District Office, 840 South Main Street, Salinas. RSVP to Crystal Macias Diaz at cmacias@literacycampaignmc.org or 595-2665. Lunch will be provided and sitting is limited. RSVP needed to plan lunches.

Monterey County gets grant renewed to continue literacy efforts

The Monterey County Office of Education’s AmeriCorps program was awarded another three-year grant for $359,957 to continue its United for Literacy program efforts in Monterey County. This is the fifth consecutive award for AmeriCorps.

Though the program, AmeriCorps trains about 30 tutors who each provide 1,700 hours of literacy development service to schools annually. Tutors provide one-on-one or small group tutoring during and after school hours for 30 minutes at least three times a week. This year, more than 515 students will receive at least 20 hours of tutoring.

Fifty-eight percent of second through fourth graders do not meet proficiency standards in language arts and 64 percent of students are English learners, according to the California Department of Education.


Monterey County United for Literacy mobilizes and links community resources that enable Monterey County children to read well and independently by the end of fourth grade. Since its inception in 2000, the program has clocked 484,000 hours of volunteer service reaching 6,175 students with one-on-one reading tutoring. Ninety percent of students participating in United for Literacy have advanced their reading ability to reach performance objectives.

More literacy tutors needed

There are over 70 adults in Monterey County waiting for a tutor to help them learn how to read, write, speak and understand English better. Language skills are crucial not only for people to navigate the labor force, but also to help their children thrive in school and become productive members of society.

One in four adults in Monterey County read below the 4th grade level. Administrators with the Monterey County Free Libraries want to change this statistic.

Become a literacy tutor. Volunteers with the program provide one-on-one tutoring to help learners read, write, speak and understand English better. New volunteers may join the program at any point during the year by registering for the new tutor training. Make a commitment of just two hours per week for six months or longer if you wish.

The next orientation and training will be held at the Seaside Branch Library at 550 Harcourt Ave, Seaside, CA 93955

Part I on Tuesday, July 17, 6:00-8:30 pm

Part II on Thursday, July 19, 6:00-8:30 pm. Would-be volunteers are asked to attend both sessions.

For more information or to register for training, call 831-883-7597, or email andrewscs@co.monterey.ca.us

Sometimes, the way to help a child is to help an adult

Become a literacy tutor!

Imagine not being able to fill out a job application, help your children with their homework, or read the signs in a grocery store. In Monterey County, one in four adults read below the 4th grade level. Help them help themselves!

Become a literacy tutor with the Read with Monterey County Free Libraries’ literacy program and provide one-to-one tutoring to help learners read, write, speak and understand English better. New volunteers may join the program at any point during the year by registering for our new tutor training. Make a commitment of just two hours per week for at least six months.

There are over 70 adults in the Monterey our waiting list who are ready for your assistance.

The next orientation and new tutor training is at the Seaside Branch, 550 Harcourt Ave in Seaside. It takes place in two days: Monday, June 11, 6:00-8:30 pm and again on June 14 at the same time and place

For more information or to register for training, call Cathy or Edith 831-883-7597, or email andrewscs@co.monterey.ca.us

Read Across America is March 2, Steinbeck day of Writing March 12

and it would be a good opportunity to volunteer.

So contact your local school and find out of they're "Reading Across America" and sign up! -- I know some schools are going to celebrate it, and if you want me to list you, drop me a line.

The green movie "The Lorax" will open also in movie theaters March 2, so expect the environmentally concerned mustachioed creature to be ubiquitous. And maybe read from its story.

You may also want to volunteer for a day of writing! The Steinbeck Young Authors program hosts a Day of Writing for young authors to enhance their writing skills, and discover the works of John Steinbeck. A good book and strong teachers inspired himself—a combination Steinbeck organizers hope will motivate students to discover the power of the written word.

On March 12, dozens of students gather at the National Steinbeck Center to receive one-on-one writing mentorship from a coach. The students then have time to re-write their essay. A panel of experts judges the final products, and the selected winners are invited to an award ceremony.

So, if you have some time to spare on March 12, sign up! I've done it several times and it's very rewarding to help our young students. For information, contact Sandra Silva at 831-775-4729 or email at Sandra@steinbeck.org.