The Voice of Experience
MARCH-APRIL 2008
in this issue
MEMBER PROFILE
still teaching

Gertie Sleeper, retired teacher’s aide, San Francisco

I joined Experience Corps because: I wanted to help the community. I live right down the street from the school, and I knew I could help the youngsters there.

The best part of being an Experience Corps member: Praising the kids and seeing them be enthusiastic about learning. They are so smart!

I like to tell the story about: One little girl who kept following me around. I encouraged her to sit and do her work. Now she does her work, and then she draws hearts and pictures of herself and gives them to me.

I'm sticking with Experience Corps because: I enjoy being with the kids. When they graduate into the higher grades, they still see me in school and ask for help. Making a deep impression on them is wonderful.

A Letter from the CEO
Johnson Primary School sits on the edge of the Pascua Yaqui reservation, 20 minutes south of Tucson. The Pascua Yaqui believe that people should pass under an arch when they move from one world to another, so when I visited Johnson Primary recently, I walked under a series of arches.

Johnson Primary School's Arches And boy did I feel like I had moved from one world into another. From a dry, scrubby landscape to a warm, nurturing environment. From the cynicism of Washington to the hope of a school brimming with possibilities. From general skepticism about whether all children, especially poor and minority children, can excel, into a new world where, in fact, folks prove every day that every child can learn.

At Johnson Primary School, more than half the students are from the tribe and almost all the students are children of color. But Dan Weisz, the school´s principal, the faculty, and a team of Experience Corps members expect every child – regardless of family background, income, race, gender, or previous academic performance – to learn.

I´ve seen a lot of school interventions, and I know often they are typically viewed as nice add-ons, hardly central to a child´s success. Just the opposite is true at Johnson Primary – Experience Corps is the key intervention for kids who are struggling to learn to read.

No aspect of the assignment is taken lightly. Experience Corps members are carefully trained and supervised. Both the student and the Experience Corps member know exactly what they need to achieve. Progress is continuously monitored. And the kids and tutors are both held accountable. Johnson Primary, full of students with big challenges and big promise, produces remarkable results.

When I left, I crossed under those arches again, bringing with me warmth and optimism, a sense of how schooling should be, and a feeling that Experience Corps is right with the world.

John S. Gomperts
jgomperts@experiencecorps.org

Think Tank Cites ´Significant Difference´

Center for American Progress Panel Discussion Experience Corps makes "a significant difference" to students and schools, according to a study by the Center for American Progress. The Center, a think tank in Washington, DC, calls for the expansion of Experience Corps and five other school-based programs partially funded by AmeriCorps to "make this resource available to principals of struggling schools." John Gomperts, CEO of Experience Corps, joined other leaders in education and national service to discuss the preliminary findings at a forum titled, The AmeriCorps Role in Education Reform. Read more »

One Million Boomers

Writing in a recent Chronicle of Philanthropy editorial, Experience Corps co-founder Marc Freedman describes boomers as the first generation "in danger of leaving the world worse than they found it." He calls on the nonprofit sector to challenge one million boomers to commit 10 years of service to help solve some of society´s biggest problems. To accomplish this, nonprofit employers must "get over their youth-centric attitudes" and engage boomers in encore careers, he writes. Read more »

Breaking New Ground: California´s Secretary of Service

Schwarzenegger announced the nation´s first cabinet–level Secretary of Service Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger announced the nation´s first cabinet–level Secretary of Service and Volunteering. Karen Baker, executive director of California Volunteers, will fill the post. Schwarzenegger hopes the position will increase the number of volunteers in the state. Nearly 6.5 million Californians contributed more than 850 million hours of service to the state´s economy in 2006 – a value of more than $17.4 billion. Read more »

Experience Talks

The March 4 edition of Experience Talks – A Radio Magazine for the Experienced Listener featured Marc Freedman and Linda Fried, co–founders of Experience Corps, in "Giving Back in the Second Half of Life." They were joined by Experience Corps member Barbara Thomas. Listen to their discussion ».

Leading with Experience: Tool Kits Available Free

Leading with Experience: Engaging Older Adults as Community Leaders provides lessons from Experience Corps leadership training institutes and extensive materials to help other organizations develop older adult leadership trainings. Single copies are now available free of charge. Contact Latia Bowles to request one.

The Longevity Revolution


Longer lives have stirred fears that economically dependent old people will drag down the economy and incite intergenerational conflict. Dr. Robert Butler, the nation´s preeminent aging expert, prescribes a remedy in his new book, The Longevity Revolution. Read an excerpt »

Encore: A Chance to Tell Your Story

Encore.org is an online community of people who are living out a distinct and compelling vision of work in the second half of life. Members share stories about seeking the freedom from work in new ways, on new terms and to new ends. According to editor David Bank, "The hundreds of stories make me believe that something big is happening. They burn with passion to do things, change things, build things. The emerging encore stage of life is the sum of all of our stories." Visit Encore.org to share your story.

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 23 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. Experience Corps is a signature program of Civic Ventures.

Learn more about Experience Corps in these cities: Annapolis, MD, 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

Experience Corps is a signature program of Civic Ventures.
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Copyright © 2008 Civic Ventures. All rights reserved.

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