Joyful Readers

Americorps reading tutoring program - Joyful Readers recruits and trains americorps members to serve as high-dosage reading tutors for philadelphia public school students who need additional support to read on grade level. The program is based on the extensive body of research that identifies high-dosage reading tutoring as one of the most effective education inteventions available to students. In fiscal year 2023, Joyful Readers recruited 24 americorps members and provided them with training in the science of reading, including a graduate course in reading instruction. In total, the tutor cohort provided over 16,000 hours of reading tutoring to 536 students across 15 philadelphia public elementary schools. (continued on schedule o)external research on the Joyful Readers program found that students' reading growth outpaced the growth that would be expected in a typical school year. Students not only improved in reading, but also made meaningful progress towards closing the gap between their assessment scores and the national median score of students in the same grade between fall to spring. Seventy-nine percent of graduates from the Joyful Readers americorps member cohort reported that their next step involved pursuing a career in the education field, helping Joyful Readers to contribute to a diverse pipeline of educators who will continue to serve students after their term of service.