Johnathan Salinas was studying Music Performance at Texas State before joining Literacy First. He’s now a first-grade teacher. In this Alumni Q&A, he talks about how the program gave him the “strong foundation” he needed to begin a career in education. What were you doing before joining Literacy First?Before joining Literacy First, I was finishing […]
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Blog
We Call Them AmeriCorps Members
In recent news, there’s been a lot of talk about what “national service” means. National service programs like AmeriCorps are part of the Corporation for National and Community Service , which is currently in the spotlight as the federal budget reaches its April 28 announcement date. At Literacy First, we see the impact of national […]
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Protecting Her Literacy Legacy: Alumni Amy Akiyama Gives Back
When she was a tutor, Amy Akiyama’s favorite children to work with were the most challenging students. “Those kids took extra effort to work with,” she remembers, “but in the end…I’ll never forget them.” She loved the challenge of communicating difficult reading concepts to children who were dealing with the learning disadvantages of living in […]
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What It Sounds Like When a Child Doesn’t Know How to Read
Last month, I sat one-on-one with about 50 kindergarten, first, and second grade students at the elementary school where I work to find out if their reading skills matched those required for their grade level, or if they might qualify for some extra reading help. I am a new tutor with Literacy First, an organization […]
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Five Reasons Why Illiteracy is Scary
If you can’t read, life can be pretty scary. Here are five reasons why everyone deserves to learn to read. 5. You can’t play Bananagrams™. Or Wheel of Fortune™. Or Boggle™. Or Scrabble™. Or nearly any board games. And if you can’t play board games, how are you supposed to survive the holidays with your […]
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Still Figuring It Out: My AmeriCorps Gap Year
Literacy First is perfect for those seeking a “gap year” experience: that year after you get your bachelor’s degree but aren’t quite sure what you’re supposed to do with it yet. Many AmeriCorps members arrive to our program knowing they want to gain one-on-one experience teaching public school children in a low-income, urban community before […]
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Hidden Gem at UT Not So Hidden Anymore
A childhood literacy program at the Charles A. Dana Center is no longer the best-kept secret among outreach programs at The University of Texas at Austin. Literacy First, a program that sends over 100 full-time AmeriCorps tutors into public elementary schools every year to teach Austin’s youngest children how to read, has recently been recognized at […]
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First Lady of Texas Shows Support for UT Literacy Program Rebrand
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 9/2/16 Contact: Mary Ellen Isaacs Tel. 512-232-2286 Email: meisaacs@austin.utexas.edu FIRST LADY OF TEXAS SHOWS SUPPORT FOR UT LITERACY PROGRAM REBRAND Cecilia Abbott was the guest of honor Thursday morning at an unveiling of the new name and logo for ACE: A Community for Education, an early literacy program based at […]
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Learning and Leadership: Meet Henry Jaeger
Introducing Henry Jaeger, who is returning for a second year of service as a bilingual literacy tutor. Why did you choose to serve with Literacy First? When I moved back to the States after teaching in China for six years, I knew I wanted to do AmeriCorps, but I wasn’t sure what program […]
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The Unbreakable Hope of Meghan Robinson
Meghan Robinson’s relationship with community service began long before she served as a Literacy First tutor. As early as middle school, Meghan was already an active volunteer, giving her time to organizations like Head Start and Big Brothers Big Sisters. In college, she continued to volunteer her time as a bilingual Spanish tutor, little […]
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