Mission Statement
To "Create a Culture of Literacy in Every Home." Across the country, literacy rates continue to decline and so, too, does reading as a daily activity. One of the greatest threats to our society is illiteracy. As illiteracy increases, academic achievement declines and with it our functionality as a society. Unless this trend is reversed, our communities will suffer continued socio-economic peril and the American standard of living will continue to decline. Our organization works to educate families to help them understand the importance of creating an environment of literacy in the home to increase each child's ability to succeed academically. As parents establish reading activities as a component of the home environment, many benefits are realized. Reading books aloud together is the single most important activity that any family can undertake to help stimulate intellectual development in children. Family relationships are cultivated and the parent/child bond is strengthened. In order to attain excellence in education, we, as a society, must acknowledge the importance of promoting literacy and foster collaborative educational attainment between schools and families.
Web and Social Media
Facebook
Leadership
CEO/Executive Director
John M Dwyer
Board Chair
Mr. Keith Hauser
Board Chair Company Affiliation
Singlestone Consulting
Contact Information
Address
c/o John M. Dwyer
2201 W. Broad Street, Suite 206
Richmond, VA 23220
Telephone
804 367-3195
Fax
804 367-3434
E-mail
admin@readtothem.org
History and Background
Year of Incorporation
2004
Financial Summary
Projected Revenue
$1,531,000.00
Projected Expenses
$1,427,000.00
Statements
Mission
To "Create a Culture of Literacy in Every Home." Across the country, literacy rates continue to decline and so, too, does reading as a daily activity. One of the greatest threats to our society is illiteracy. As illiteracy increases, academic achievement declines and with it our functionality as a society. Unless this trend is reversed, our communities will suffer continued socio-economic peril and the American standard of living will continue to decline. Our organization works to educate families to help them understand the importance of creating an environment of literacy in the home to increase each child's ability to succeed academically. As parents establish reading activities as a component of the home environment, many benefits are realized. Reading books aloud together is the single most important activity that any family can undertake to help stimulate intellectual development in children. Family relationships are cultivated and the parent/child bond is strengthened. In order to attain excellence in education, we, as a society, must acknowledge the importance of promoting literacy and foster collaborative educational attainment between schools and families.
Impact
1) Co-sponsored the annual observance of "Read Aloud to a Child Week" with the Virginia Department of Education
2) Sponsored three RPS elementary schools to participate in our programs bringing our message of family literacy to more than 1,500 local families.
3) Continued to "Build a Community of Readers" with the spread of our One School, One Book program to more than 1,000 communities nationally.
4) Reached more than 200,000 families in 42 states with family literacy education and program engagement.
Needs
Read To Them has successfully engaged many families across the nation with our Family Literacy initiatives. At the end of this year, 1,000 schools will have partnered with our organization and joined our "Community of Readers." This is still a small percentage of the thousands of primary and elementary schools in our country. We would like to request donations to help spread our message and make many more communities aware of our programs and the critical need we address.
Background
From its creation, Read To Them has been advocating for reading books aloud to children. Research demonstrates the many benefits of this activity. The children of participating families were more likely to become capable readers and achieve academic success. They developed better listening skills and exhibited more socially appropriate behaviors. In 2002 we developed and tested the One School, One Book program which was a way to get every family in a school community reading the same book together at home. Each day that the book was being read, the children participated in related activities at school. It was determined that this program was extremely effective in bridging the gap between school and home education and provided a framework to actively engage families in home literacy. Since that time we have expanded the program initiatives to provide family literacy education.
CEO Statement
Our family literacy programs are the most effective way to engage families in participating in their child's education. Rather than simply providing awareness of home literacy initiatives, it actually engages families in a step by step program that makes it happen. This is not a passive approach to addressing a recognized need. This program gets families involved and enlists them as partners with their children's school to empower and inspire their children to become strong readers and succeed academically. Professional educators recognize the limitations of what can be accomplished in the confines of a school. They need parents to partner with them and work together to inspire their children to attain to educational excellence. We help to make this happen and thereby empower parents to help children reach their full potential.
Board Chair
Board Chair
Mr. Keith Hauser
Company Affiliation
Singlestone Consulting
Term
Sept 2014 to Sept 2017
Email
khauser@singlestoneconsulting.com
Board Demographics - Ethnicity
African American/Black
2
Asian American/Pacific Islander
1
Caucasian
8
Hispanic/Latino
0
Native American/American Indian
0
Other
0 0
Board Demographics - Gender
Male
6
Female
5
Unspecified
0
Governance
Board Term Lengths
1
Board Term Limits
9
Board Meeting Attendance %
73
Written Board Selection Criteria?
Under Development
Written Conflict of Interest Policy?
Under Development
Percentage Making Monetary Contributions
100
Percentage Making In-Kind Contributions
100
Number of Full Board Meetings Annually
4
Other Boards
The tables below contain information about other groups that advise this nonprofit on operations and projects.
Executive Director
Executive Director
John M Dwyer
Staff
Full Time Staff
2
Part Time Staff
4
Contractors
4
Plans
Organization has a Strategic Plan?
Fiscal Year
Projected Revenue
$1,531,000.00
Projected Expenses
$1,427,000.00
Spending Policy
Income Only
Detailed Financials
Short Term Solvency
Capital Campaign
Currently in a Capital Campaign?
No
State Charitable Solicitaions Permit