You can become a 'Joyful Readers' tutor to help Philadelphia students

Matteo Iadonisi Image
Thursday, May 25, 2023
You can become a 'Joyful Readers' tutor to help Philadelphia students
In its first year, 'Joyful Readers' has trained over 20 tutors to help nearly 600 students in Philadelphia gain confidence and learn a fundamental skill.

PHILADELPHIA, Pennsylvania (WPVI) -- "I've been working in public education for a number of years in Philadelphia and I wanted to see better results for kids," said Dave Weinstein. "And I saw that there was high-impact tutoring that was happening in other cities across the country."

Wanting to see the same for his own city, Weinstein founded the 'Joyful Readers' program. Planning started in 2021 and paved the way for a successful launch in the 2022-2023 school year. The program receives federal funding from an independent agency in the U.S. government known as AmeriCorps.

"We recruit really great people to serve with us as AmeriCorps members," he said. "And we train them in the science of reading to make sure that they can be great reading tutors for kids."

So far, the program has been a success at schools like Clymer Elementary in North Philadelphia.

"We have over 20 tutors this year. We've worked with nearly 600 students across nine Philadelphia public schools," said Weinstein. "And we're looking to grow next year. So, we need more people to serve as tutors for us and we're looking to serve 1,000 kids next year."

Watch our video above to see how those tutors interact with students and how 'Joyful Readers' has served as a two-way street to change lives!

To learn more about Joyful Readers or to apply to become a tutor, visit their website.

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