
Michele leaves tutor notes in her student’s folder. Prepared lesson plans make tutoring sessions easy.
In Oklahoma, 4 out of 5 fourth graders from low-income families cannot read at grade level. This sobering statistic was a call to action for the Nadel and Gussman team to embrace Reading Partners, a national education nonprofit that works with Title I elementary schools to support students who are reading six months to two and a half years below grade level. Reading Partners uses a one on one tutoring model that enables community volunteers to help students master basic reading skills and grow to be successful learners.

Danita Cockrell with her student at Hawthorne Elementary.
With nearly a third of our Tulsa staff volunteering an hour or more per week to work with students at Academy Central and Hawthorne Elementary, we are determined to make a difference with our student partners. Last year, 90% of students in the program gained the skills needed to read at grade level during the school year.
You can also be a part of positively changing the trajectory of a child’s life by committing just an hour a each week. For information on how you can become a Reading Partner, visit http://readingpartners.org/location/tulsa/