Just imagine if children and the elderly never intermixed. Think how much both the youth and elders would miss.
JABA’s FISH Program addresses the community need of closing the achievement gap in our public schools. Over 50 FISH volunteers (aged 18-80) tutor elementary students in the City of Charlottesville and Albemarle, Greene and Fluvanna Counties, as well as in an after school program within a Senior Housing facility. The focus is on tutoring elementary students one-on-one in reading and math, helping ESOL students understand cultural concepts and supporting four year olds to get off to a good start in school. Students who are “academically at-risk” are chosen by their teachers to participate. Progress is measured throughout the school year.
You may ask why JABA (Jefferson Area Board for Aging) sponsors an intergenerational tutoring program in our schools? JABA believes that a community that is good for children is also a community that is good for seniors. JABA created the FISH Program to give seniors the opportunity to support young people in our public schools and to give children opportunities to interact with seniors. In addition to being tutors, FISH volunteers are informal mentors. Generations United, reports that students who have an ongoing relationship with a senior adult are more confident in their school work, have better classroom behavior and greater self esteem. They are also less likely to use illegal drugs and alcohol.
Additionally, in 2015, the “No Child Left Behind Act” will require that all students be proficient in reading and math. The 2007-2008 “Virginia State Report Card” identified schools that did not make adequate yearly progress. The two groups of students having the most difficult time meeting adequate yearly progress benchmarks are African-American students and economically disadvantaged students. FISH volunteers interact directly with these students.
Funding will make it possible for us to recruit additional tutors, provide training for them , work with school principals and teachers in placing volunteers, and provide support for all FISH volunteers to be successful.
For more information, please contact Marguerite David at: 434-817-5229, or mdavid@jabacares.org.