The Voice of Experience
MARCH 2006
in this issue
MEMBER PROFILE
A Letter from the CEO
Frank McCourt
Frank McCourt
I loved reading Angela's Ashes, a story about a boy growing up destitute in Ireland, not just because it was so compelling but because it was author Frank McCourt's first book, written when he was 66. Imagine switching careers at 66 from teacher to author, selling millions of copies plus the movie rights, then winning the Pulitzer Prize. How great is that?

It's important to note that being a bestselling author was McCourt's second calling after a 30-year career as a teacher in the New York City public schools. His newest book, Teacher Man, focuses on those years in the classroom. Read a few pages and you'll see that McCourt isn't just an inspired writer; he was an inspired teacher, too. He listened to his students, believed in them, challenged them, held them to high standards, and used anything he could find to unlock their ability to learn.

For most Experience Corps members, working with children in education is a second calling. After 30+ years doing something else -- working for the phone company, selling houses, delivering mail, or doing myriad other jobs -- Experience Corps members come to the public schools with the same kind of passion for helping kids that Frank McCourt had in his years as a teacher. Like McCourt, they listen to kids, believe in them, challenge them, and hold them to high standards. They help them succeed.

I've always wanted to meet Frank McCourt, but now what I really want to do is to take him back into a New York City school and introduce him to a few Experience Corps members. They'd have a lot in common -- belief in kids, the thrill of successful second callings, and some really great stories, I'm sure.

John S. Gomperts
jgomperts@experiencecorps.org

P.S. Speaking of stories, Cleveland Experience Corps member Charlene Connors tells a great one about small steps toward progress – her own and a special education student named Alice's.

Experience Corps Wins National 'Program of Excellence' Award

Experience Corps was selected as a "Program of Excellence" by the National Council on Aging (NCOA) today for its "leadership in engaging older adults" and for demonstrating "successful practices in fostering continuing contributions that have dramatic organizational and community impact." The award, announced this week at the joint NCOA/American Society on Aging conference in Anaheim, California, concludes a rigorous national search for the most "promising practices in the civic engagement of older persons" and includes a $10,000 cash prize. Read more >>

Candidate Pledges to Create 'Experience Corps Maryland'

Martin O'Malley, Baltimore's mayor and a leading candidate for governor, has published a plan to make Maryland "the most aging friendly state in America." What's first on the list? A plan to expand Experience Corps statewide. Calling Experience Corps "one of Baltimore's most innovative policy developments," O'Malley points to Experience Corps as a model that provides "the respect that older and retired Marylanders deserve and the opportunities they demand."
Read more [PDF] >>

New Study Sheds Light on Why Students Drop Out

Nearly one out of three public high school students does not earn a high school diploma. Why? New research goes straight to the source, asking dropouts in 25 locations, why they left school. Despite cultural, racial, and geographical diversity, the students' reasons for leaving school were remarkably similar:
  • 69 percent said they were not inspired to work hard,
  • 65 percent missed class often in the year before they dropped out, and
  • 45 percent said their earlier schooling did not prepare them for high school, reporting that "additional supports that would have made a difference (such as tutoring or after-school help) were not there."
The Silent Epidemic: Perspectives of High School Dropouts was conducted by Civic Enterprises for the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.
Read more [PDF] >>

New York Provides $250,000 to Help Experience Corps Expand

Experience Corps received a $250,000 grant from the New York City government this year to expand into elementary schools in Queens. The news follows results showing that students who work with Experience Corps tutors in intensive one-on-one tutoring show significant improvement in their literacy skills. Experience Corps in New York City is run by the Community Service Society. Read more >>

Studies Link Poor Literacy Skills to Behavior Problems in School

Two studies published in the most recent issue of the journal Child Development find an "inextricable link" between literacy skills and social behavior. One study, conducted by researchers at Stanford University, found that "children with low reading skills in first and third grade are more likely to have relatively high aggressive behavior in third and fifth grades." The other study, conducted jointly by researchers at King's College in London and the University of Wisconsin-Madison, found that the connection between reading problems and behavioral problems is particularly strong among boys. The study's authors call it a "reciprocal causation model," noting that poor reading skills led to antisocial behavior, and vice versa. Read more about the Stanford study and the King's College study.

Lantos Honored for Key Role in Supporting Experience Corps

Experience Corps Experience Corps members, students, and school staff honored and thanked Rep. Tom Lantos, whose support has been instrumental to the program's success, at a reception held this month at Francis Scott Key Elementary School in San Francisco. "To see a bit of federal help to enable these wonderful people to give freely and joyfully and with love of their talent and attention and knowledge and experience to these kids is truly heartwarming," Lantos said. "The life of a member of Congress is so crowded and so full of a thousand things that, at the end of the day, you don't know who you saw in the morning, who you had breakfast and lunch with," Lantos said. "But this is an event that [my wife] Annette and I will remember as long as we are in Congress." Read more >>

Experience Corps in the News

About Experience Corps

Experience Corps, an award-winning program, engages people over 55 in meeting society's greatest challenges. Today, in 22 cities across the country, 2,000 Experience Corps members tutor and mentor elementary school students struggling to learn to read. Independent research shows that Experience Corps boosts student academic performance, helps schools and youth-serving organizations become more successful, and enhances the well-being of the older adults in the process.

Learn more about Experience Corps in these cities: Baltimore City, Baltimore County, MD, Beaumont, TX, Boston, MA, Cleveland, Evansville, IN, Grand Rapids, Greater New Haven, Marin County, Mesa, Minneapolis, New York City, Oakland, Philadelphia, Port Arthur, TX, Portland, OR, Revere, MA, San Francisco, St. Paul, Tempe, Tucson, AZ, Washington, DC.

Questions or comments? Send an email to info@experiencecorps.org
2120 L St., NW, Suite 600, Washington, DC 20037
Copyright © 2010 Experience Corps. All rights reserved.

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