TCU Foundation Awards $2,000 To Read to Grow Children’s Book Club
WARSAW — The TCU Foundation recently awarded $2,000 to Read to Grow Children’s Book Club, a program of Kosciusko Literacy Services. Karen Mayer, manager at Teachers Credit Union in Warsaw, presented Kosciusko Literacy Services’ Executive Director Cindy Cates with the grant.
Kosciusko Literacy Services is honored to receive the support of the TCU Foundation.
The TCU Foundation was established to support the Credit Union Vision of being a positive force in the communities served by TCU. The mission of the TCU Foundation is “To promote financial literacy/empowerment, education and other opportunities and causes supported by the membership, which directly benefit the communities in which TCU operates.”
The TCU Foundation fulfills the mission by promoting the Credit Union Philosophy of “People Helping People,” advancing financial literacy and empowerment, connecting people with resources for education, employment, character building advancement, and building stronger communities.
Read to Grow Children’s Book Club has helped children from low-income homes enter kindergarten on par with their peers and continue their academic success. The children enter kindergarten with pre-literacy skills necessary to continue learning.
The pre-literacy skills are vocabulary, print motivation (the enjoyment of books), phonological awareness, narrative skills, letter knowledge and print awareness. The early development of these skills is necessary for future success in school.
In the fall of 2015, over 45 percent of the Read to Grow Children’s Book Club graduates made the honor roll in third grade.
Kosciusko Literacy Services’ Read to Grow Children’s Book Club is an on-going program addressing the lack of basic skills low-income children have when entering the school system. The Read to Grow Children’s Book Club has served Kosciusko County as a United Way partner program since 2006.
The Read to Grow Children’s Book Club provides one book a month to each registered, preschool child living below the 150 percent of the poverty level. The enrollment averages over 560 children each month.
By placing the books in the home, Kosciusko Literacy Services addresses one of the main reasons children have low skills when entering school—the lack of reading material in the home. The parents sign an agreement to read regularly to their child. Reading to children at an early age helps the child’s brain to develop language and reading skills.
This program helps the child have the necessary skills to be ready for school and to continue learning. The program is very tangible—the books belong to the child and are in the child’s home.
In addition to the child’s brain being stimulated and the books being available on a daily basis, an indirect outcome of this program is that the bond between parent and child is enhanced during the quality interaction of reading stories.
Stronger families and improved educational capacity of the child builds stronger and more productive communities. This program has proven, positive results. The support of the TCU Foundation helps to ensure the success of children in Kosciusko County.