Karlyana Jamieson, 5, touches the shell of a tortoise Monday at Reading Partners program at Springfield Community Center.
Steve J.P. Liang / News-Leader CFO grants include aid for literacy effort
Awards given for education and to develop community.
Linda Leicht
News-Leader
Shania Tennessee loves frogs — and she loves to read. The third-grader is part of a new learning program that focuses on reading and math literacy in Springfield. Monday after school, Shania and about a dozen other kids got a close-up look at frogs from Dickerson Park Zoo, read the colorful book "Frogs" by Carolyn MacLulich, answered questions, and asked a few of their own. It was all part of the Family Literacy Centers of Springfield, a program that will expand thanks to a $32,000 grant from the Community Foundation of the Ozarks. The grant, along with 14 others totaling $175,000, was announced Tuesday morning. It is part of the Metropolitan Springfield grant program, focusing on education and community development. The Metropolitan Springfield program has distributed approximately $725,000 in 2007-08. There are traditionally three grant rounds, focusing on health and social services, arts/culture and environment, and education and community development. The foundation has made more than $49 million in grants and other distributions since its inception in 1973. Today, CFO handles about $146 million in charitable assets, which it manages for more than 1,400 funds and 40 affiliates. Family Literacy Family Literacy Centers of Springfield was started by a group of concerned community leaders in spring of 2007. "We have a vision in the community where all children and adults are proficient in reading and math," said Charles Johnson, founder of the grassroots project. A pilot program was conducted in the summer, with practicum students from Missouri State University College of Education providing assessment and intervention in reading and mathematics for 80 students in kindergarten through 12th grade. "We're having great results," said Johnson, a special education teacher at Republic High School. Calvin Allen, director of the Springfield Community Center where the literacy program was held this summer, agreed. The students' assessments before and after the program showed that reading levels had improved and school assessments showed that the improvement continued after school started in the fall, he said. "It's been interesting to see the progress," he said. Allen said the combination of a good learning environment and "top notch professionals" from public schools and universities has been the key. "It breeds success," he said. With the new grant, the same program will also be offered at the Boys and Girls Clubs Musgrave Unit. "For every dollar they are spending on us, they will get $7 in return," Johnson said of the impact of the grant. "That's the norm when you invest in the community." The Ozarks Literacy Council is also getting a grant for its role in the program. The $3,710 grant will allow the council to expand its "Books Come Alive" program, which was developed for the Family Literacy Centers. The program brings presenters such as police and firefighters who read books to the kids, a chef who carved a sea horse out of exotic fruit, an opera singer who used puppets to bring opera to life, and Pam Herd, conservation educator with the zoo, with her menagerie of amphibians, said Paula Shoemaker, director of the Ozarks Literacy Council. Each presenter brings a book and a real life example to make that story come to life for the kids. "We've really made it a community project," she said. Nine-year-old Shania loved "Frogs" and the real frogs Herd brought to the program, and she loves to read stories about frogs. "Frogs are so cool," she said, "especially in fairy tales when they become a prince." | | 
| Grant recipients Community Foundation of the Ozarks announced $175,000 in grants Tuesday morning. The grants were given to area programs in the education and community development category and address the "red flag" areas identified in the 2007 Community Focus Report.
The grants are:
Community Partnership of the Ozarks, $21,600 for "CASH" financial literacy program. The program will serve some 110 low-income families in the Springfield area.
Drury University -- School of Education & Child Development, $35,000 to create practical career-planning opportunities and support in college choices for students at Pipkin Middle School and Central High School.
East Grand Community Services, $6,750 to provide morning and after-school support services to students in Bingham Elementary and, beginning in August, Pittman Elementary.
Family Literacy Centers of Springfield Inc., $32,000 to address reading and math literacy in at-risk, racially and ethnically-diverse children and adults.
Logan-Rogersville Educational Foundation, $5,850 to address dropout issues by implementing "Jumpstart" -- a life-skills class that promotes "Succeeding in High School."
Ozarks Literacy Council, $3,710 to address literacy in low-income, racially and ethnically diverse children. This grant partners with the Family Literacy Centers, MSU, the Springfield Community Center, and the Boys & Girls Club -- Musgrave Unit, through "Books Come Alive."
Ozarks Technical Community College Foundation, $18,500 to join with the Springfield Public Schools in furthering their collaboration on a "Middle College," which will provide opportunities for marginalized students to learn job-readiness skills for a more successful transition into the workforce; and/or, have greater access to post-secondary education.
Reed Middle School, $11,000 to increase attendance at Reed Middle School through "CHAMPs" -- a program for building positive skills toward making the transition from elementary to middle school.
Springfield Public Schools, $14,000 to raise the community awareness of the importance of attendance toward the goal of graduation. Nine organizations are joining in the "Be in School" campaign.
Greene County Family Dependency Treatment Court, $2,650 to expand "KIPS" (Keys to Interactive Parenting Scale) treatment program, which addresses the maltreatment of children due to parental substance abuse, primarily methamphetamine. This program aids in measuring parenting behaviors, tracks progress, and assesses outcomes of parenting interventions.
Junior Achievement -- Ozarks District, $2,780 to impart economic and business fundamentals to students.
The Kitchen Inc., $4,670 to implement an organization-wide, crisis training program for employees. The "Mandt System" will train an initial 85 employees.
Red Flags
The following Community Development grants, representing $14,690, are part of CFO's commitment to address children's "red flag" issues in cooperation with the "Grant Makers' Challenge for Children."
Urban Neighborhoods Alliance, $12,000 to help rebuild older neighborhoods, by providing incentives for Title I teachers to live in the neighborhoods where they teach. The grant funds are to provide down payment assistance for housing.
Down Syndrome Group of the Ozarks, $2,690 toward developing professional literature to build a network of support for individuals with Down syndrome and their families.
Missouri State University -- GO LEAD program, $1,800 to create a seminar based on the book, "Forces for Good," which will including bringing one of the authors as a guest speaker. GO LEAD offers quality, professional development and networking opportunities for nonprofits in the Springfield area. | Literacy initiative Family Literacy Centers of Springfield is a collaborative effort between education, business, faith and private and public agencies. The groups are joining together to focus on literacy for children and adults in reading, mathematics and technology, which leads participants into positive academic and life skills achievement.
Participating groups include Ozarks Literacy Council, Springfield Community Center, Bartley Decatur Neighborhood Center, Springfield Public Schools, Missouri State University, Ministers Coalition of Springfield, Deliverance Temple Ministries and Christ Exalted Ministries. |
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