*Note: Zoom was used for this interview during this time of heightened health precautions.
Cindy Dunlevy is the coordinator for the San Diego County Office of Education’s “Everyone a Reader” Program. She has been working with Everyone a Reader for 15 years.
The program started in 1995 and works with about 3,000 kids every year. “That’s about 75,000 kids that we have helped,” says Cindy.
Tutors work with teachers to give reading support to students “just below grade level.” Each tutor works with four students one-to-one with a trained adult, fifteen minutes each, three to four times a week. The purpose of the fifteen-minute meeting is to minimize the time that students spend out of the classroom and to make sure the length of the session is appropriate for the child’s attention span.
Reading time is fun, and books are selected that the students want to read. Parents comprise about half of the volunteers, with participation from about 150 schools. Cindy reminds us that, “Anytime you have that one-on-one instruction, it’s going to be effective.”
Cindy says that the students love their tutors. “Students often run up to greet their tutors; they are so happy to see each other. Volunteers have said, ‘I think I get more out of this than kids do!’”
Reading tutors for Everyone A Reader range from retired senior citizens, to parents, to attorney groups, to military personnel.
Everyone a Reader was developed by the San Diego County Office of Education in 1995 to ensure that all1st through 3rd graders were progressing in reading per their grade levels. Participation in the program is a ‘win, win, win’ for students, teachers, and volunteers.
We asked Cindy, “What do you want people to know about your program?”
The Everyone A Reader Volunteer Program serves elementary students in San Diego County who need additional support in decoding and comprehension reading strategies. Trained tutors reinforce reading strategies as students practice in a one-on-one supportive environment. During the process the students become more proficient readers and build their confidence to become independent learners. The one-to-one support helps students learn to read and get up to grade level.
How can people get involved and support the program?
Everyone a Reader accepts donations of diverse books for grades 1 – 3. Adults can also become a volunteer tutor or a coordinator for a school in San Diego County (contact Cindy Dunlevy to learn more about how the program is operating in the current environment). Tutor training is 2 hours long. Training for coordinator is 4 hours in length. Each tutor is matched with a nearby school.
Don’t miss the opportunity to support this amazing program!
Contacts and Links:
San Diego County Office of Education – Everyone A Reader
San Diego County Office of Education
5304 Metro Street, Suite C
San Diego, CA 92110
(619) 718-3120 (800) 711-7323
(619) 291-5995 fax
Coordinator: Cindy Dunlevy
Email: cidunlevy@sdcoe.net
Website: http://www.sdcoe.net/EAR