Today marks the beginning of National Volunteer Week. Ironically, this week could also mark the end of the valuable Washington Reading Corps program if legislators don’t stop to think about what they’re doing.
In a tight budget year, Gov. Christine Gregoire saw fit to keep the thriving program in her budget. Legislators appear to be having other thoughts, though, and it looks as if they might give it the boot.
It would be a counterproductive move. Not only would legislators be axing a program that offers proof of improved reading scores on the Washington Assessment of Student Learning, it’s fairly inexpensive to operate and the money put into it generates millions in federal dollars for our state.
Washington boasts the nation’s highest number of AmeriCorps volunteers. And the Washington Reading Corps program boasts some solid statistics. It operates statewide and focuses on students through sixth grade. Schools that participate in the program improved their fourth grade reading WASL scores by 18 percent compared to the statewide average of 15.3 percent.
And the good work doesn’t end with the actual AmeriCorps and VISTA members. Those people recruit and train about 9,500 people every year to help students learn to read. These are people in our neighborhoods and communities who are being trained to work with young people who need that little extra bit of help that can make such a big difference in a child’s education. How many other programs mobilize thousands of extra people every year to give up their time to help our students?
Supporters of the program know that cuts to it are likely. In fact, the current level of funding for the biennium is $7.4 million and they hope to receive at least $1.7 million. That amount would keep the program running and still leverage the federal money.
This state values its volunteers and programs that are fiscally responsible and proven to work, especially when they help our children. Eliminating the Washington Reading Corps would send precisely the wrong message at a time when we need to promote volunteerism, not chip away at it.
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