The Literacy Lab Celebrates 15 Years of Supporting Students to Excel in the Classroom through Early Literacy Instruction

Literacy Lab Tutors and Fellows aim to improve reading proficiency amongst children in marginalized communities, while diversifying the teacher pipeline

WASHINGTON, DC, UNITED STATES, January 26, 2024 /EINPresswire.com/ — The Literacy Lab, a national leader in providing children – in communities experiencing racial and economic inequities – from age 3 through grade 3 with evidence-based, culturally responsive literacy instruction, is celebrating its 15th anniversary in 2024.

Since its inception in 2009, The Literacy Lab has served more than 36,000 students across the country to help accelerate equitable literacy gains. Fulfilling its mission has helped The Literacy Lab become a national leader in providing marginalized communities with dedicated literacy skills practice sessions in partnership with school districts.

“We’re proud of reaching our 15th-anniversary milestone and for all of our achievements over the years to support student growth and development for academic, professional and personal success,” said Heather Jenkins, CEO of The Literacy Lab. “Our far-reaching impact with our youngest learners would not be possible, however, without the relationships we have built with our community and government partners and philanthropic donors who support our innovative programs.”

To celebrate its 15th anniversary throughout 2024, The Literacy Lab will take a look at where they started, what they have achieved, and what their plans are for the future to increase their national presence and brand awareness with authentic, engaging community events and celebrity partnerships.

The organization is also focused on achieving transformative, positive, and systemic change in partnership with the communities they serve by expanding early literacy instruction to promote greater equity and inclusivity in the classroom. Learn more about The Literacy Lab’s commitment to provide culturally responsive literacy instruction by watching this video.

Highlights in The Literacy Lab’s 15-year history include:

2009

– Tom Dillon and Ashley Johnson co-founded The Literacy Lab and began offering after-school reading tutoring to children in Washington, DC and Alexandria, VA.

– The Literacy Lab is selected as a national replication partner for the Reading Corps model.

2010

– The Literacy Lab served 150 students in the 2010-2011 school year.

2011

– The Literacy Lab is named the youngest-ever organization to win Lehrman Foundation’s Impact Award.

2012

– The Minnesota Reading Corps, the nation’s largest state AmeriCorps program, names The Literacy Lab a national replication partner.

2013

– The Literacy Lab wins a national direct AmeriCorps grant and a Virginia state formula AmeriCorps grant to launch the Washington, DC and Virginia Reading Corps.

2014

– The Literacy Lab grew from serving 150 children in 2010 to serving 1,500 children in the 2014-15 school year.

2015

– The Literacy Lab secures $1.6 million in state funding for early literacy intervention in Washington, DC.

– The Literacy Lab launches Pre-K and K-3 programming in Missouri and Maryland

2016

– The Literacy Lab launches K-3 early literacy instruction programming in Virginia.

– The Literacy Lab’s Leading Men Fellowship program launches in Washington, DC.

2017

– Leading Men Fellowship program expands to Baltimore, MD.

2018

– The Literacy Lab launches programming in Springfield and Holyoke, MA.

– Leading Men Fellowship launches in Milwaukee, WI and Central VA.

2019

– The Literacy Lab provides seven million minutes of tutoring to help 6,071 students reach grade-level reading proficiency and kindergarten readiness.

2020

– The Literacy Lab successfully pivots to virtual service delivery in response to COVID-19 and delivers more than 26,000 virtual intervention sessions to over 2,500 students.

2021

– The Literacy Lab names Heather Jenkins CEO.

– Leading Men Fellowship program expands to Atlanta, GA.

2022

– The Literacy Lab receives a $10 million gift from McKenzie Scott to support equitable access to literacy education.

– Leading Men Fellowship program expands to Cincinnati, OH, Atlanta, GA, and Phoenix, AZ.

Click here for more information about The Literacy Lab’s 15th anniversary. Additional information about The Literacy Lab can be found at https://theliteracylab.org.

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About The Literacy Lab

The Literacy Lab is a national non-profit organization that provides students – in communities experiencing racial and/or economic inequities – with evidence-based, culturally responsive literacy instruction as preparation for academic, professional, and personal success. The Literacy Lab partners with school districts to help achieve attainment gains by embedding full-time, rigorously trained tutors in early childhood centers and elementary schools.

Lernard Freeman
The Literacy Lab
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