Mayor
Holden believes that education is one of the critical components to both build a strong community and attract business and outside investment. Many dedicated organizations in Baton Rouge, such as Volunteers in Public Schools
(VIPS), Boys and Girls Club, Big Buddy, and the YMCA mentor and tutor grade school students who have fallen behind in reading. All agree, however, that
the earlier reading skills and school preparedness can be addressed, the greater the chance that kids won’t feel overwhelmed in school. Mayor-President Kip Holden’s Kindergarten Reading Ready Initiative will engage volunteers to serve as reading buddies to children aged 4-6 years old, in an 8-week intensive summer reading program.
In partnership with the Department of Human Development and Services Head Start Program and VIPS, reading buddies will work one-on-one with a child for an hour 2 times per week. During these meetings the reading buddy will read to the child, point out letters and numbers, and explain sentence structure.
The initiative aims to reach between 20 and 40 children in its pilot during the first summer, with a goal to increase the understanding of phonemic awareness, a key pre-reading skill. Phonemic awareness is the ability to hear, identify, and manipulate individual sounds in spoken words.
For more information on Baton Rouge Proud, please email us at brproud@brgov.com.
