Generations Incorporated
Encyclopedia
Generations Incorporated, founded in 1991, is a non-profit organization
based in Boston
, Massachusetts
. As an intergenerational literacy organization, its mission is to unite older adults (ages 55+) and youth in service to strengthen individuals and communities.
The organization shifted its focus and its name to Generations Incorporated in the late 1990's after its CFO Mary Gunn began to engage healthy, active older adults as tutors and mentors. By 2002, Generations Incorporated had 40 volunteers helping nearly 500 children in public schools and Boys and Girls Clubs in the Greater Boston area. The organization was then selected as one of five sites for the expansion of national Experience Corps program. It is now Greater Boston's host to Experience Corps.
As part of its evaluation protocol, Generations Incorporated tests students using the Basic Reading Inventory (BRI), a tool which was created by Dr. Jerry L. Johns, a former president of the International Reading Association
, to measure student progress. While the BRI is not directly equivalent to a child’s grade level, Dr. Johns states that “an instructional reading level estimates the difficulty of the text materials that a student is able to read. If, for example, a student has a third grade instructional reading level, he or she should be able to be successful with grade 3 materials.” Generations Incorporated tests students at the beginning and the end of the school year to monitor reading progress.
Program, an innovative, intensive literacy support program that pairs trained retired tutors with struggling readers. Through expansion funding provided by Experience Corps, Generations Incorporated recently completed a 4-year expansion, growing its volunteer base from 42 older adults to 300. In the same period, Generations Incorporated grew from serving 500 children to 3,400.
Currently 300 volunteers Generations Incorporated volunteers are in service in 15 Boston Public Schools and 4 after school programs in the target communities of Roxbury, Dorchester, and South Boston. In 2007 they will reach 3,700 elementary students and will contribute over 45,000 hours of service.
In 2006 Generations Incorporated was designated as an approved provider of Supplemental Educational Services (SES). SES is available for students in schools which receive Title I funding but have not met or exceeded the goals for Adequate Yearly Progress
.
In 2005 Generations Incorporated was named Massachusetts’ Community Champion by Citizens Bank
and New England Cable News (NECN). Citizens Bank and NECN recognized Generations Incorporated for increasing the reading levels of each child it served by 2.7 reading levels, for being selected for expansion funding by the national Experience Corps program, for delivering its programs to a total of 15 sites within [Dorchester], [Roxbury], and [South Boston], and, says Citizens Financial Group
, for “serving as an innovative literacy model throughout the nation.”
Non-profit organization
Nonprofit organization is neither a legal nor technical definition but generally refers to an organization that uses surplus revenues to achieve its goals, rather than distributing them as profit or dividends...
based in Boston
Boston
Boston is the capital of and largest city in Massachusetts, and is one of the oldest cities in the United States. The largest city in New England, Boston is regarded as the unofficial "Capital of New England" for its economic and cultural impact on the entire New England region. The city proper had...
, Massachusetts
Massachusetts
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...
. As an intergenerational literacy organization, its mission is to unite older adults (ages 55+) and youth in service to strengthen individuals and communities.
History
Generations Incorporated was founded in 1991 as Magic Me, which brought school children to local nursing homes to develop relationships with residents.The organization shifted its focus and its name to Generations Incorporated in the late 1990's after its CFO Mary Gunn began to engage healthy, active older adults as tutors and mentors. By 2002, Generations Incorporated had 40 volunteers helping nearly 500 children in public schools and Boys and Girls Clubs in the Greater Boston area. The organization was then selected as one of five sites for the expansion of national Experience Corps program. It is now Greater Boston's host to Experience Corps.
Programs
The organization has three distinct programs:- Reading Coaches: Joins trained older adults with children who are reading below grade level in weekly mentoring sessions focused on reading comprehension.
- Lunchtime Mentoring: Pairs caring older adults with 4th and 5th grade students who will benefit from having a trusting mentor. The weekly mentoring sessions focus on literacy and character development while also focusing on making learning fun. This program takes place during the school day and in after-school settings.
- Classroom Literacy: Brings trained older adults into elementary school classrooms. Twice a week, they work with children in small groups to improve literacy skills while reinforcing teacher instruction. This also provides a smaller adult:child ration inside the classroom.
As part of its evaluation protocol, Generations Incorporated tests students using the Basic Reading Inventory (BRI), a tool which was created by Dr. Jerry L. Johns, a former president of the International Reading Association
International Reading Association
The International Reading Association is an international professional organization that was created in 1956 to improve reading instruction, facilitate dialogue about research on reading, and encourage the habit of reading....
, to measure student progress. While the BRI is not directly equivalent to a child’s grade level, Dr. Johns states that “an instructional reading level estimates the difficulty of the text materials that a student is able to read. If, for example, a student has a third grade instructional reading level, he or she should be able to be successful with grade 3 materials.” Generations Incorporated tests students at the beginning and the end of the school year to monitor reading progress.
Organization Growth
Since 1999, Generations Incorporated has held a strategic partnership with the national Experience CorpsExperience Corps
Experience Corps is a nonprofit organization that engages adults 55 and older as literacy tutors for struggling students in public schools. Currently, Experience Corps has 2,000 members working in schools in 19 cities around the country...
Program, an innovative, intensive literacy support program that pairs trained retired tutors with struggling readers. Through expansion funding provided by Experience Corps, Generations Incorporated recently completed a 4-year expansion, growing its volunteer base from 42 older adults to 300. In the same period, Generations Incorporated grew from serving 500 children to 3,400.
Currently 300 volunteers Generations Incorporated volunteers are in service in 15 Boston Public Schools and 4 after school programs in the target communities of Roxbury, Dorchester, and South Boston. In 2007 they will reach 3,700 elementary students and will contribute over 45,000 hours of service.
In 2006 Generations Incorporated was designated as an approved provider of Supplemental Educational Services (SES). SES is available for students in schools which receive Title I funding but have not met or exceeded the goals for Adequate Yearly Progress
Adequate Yearly Progress
Adequate Yearly Progress, or AYP, is a measurement defined by the United States federal No Child Left Behind Act that allows the U.S. Department of Education to determine how every public school and school district in the country is performing academically according to results on standardized...
.
In 2005 Generations Incorporated was named Massachusetts’ Community Champion by Citizens Bank
Citizens Bank
Citizens Bank may refer to:Financial institutions:*Citizens Bank of Canada, a virtual bank headquartered in British Columbia*Citizens Bank International Ltd., a bank in Nepal...
and New England Cable News (NECN). Citizens Bank and NECN recognized Generations Incorporated for increasing the reading levels of each child it served by 2.7 reading levels, for being selected for expansion funding by the national Experience Corps program, for delivering its programs to a total of 15 sites within [Dorchester], [Roxbury], and [South Boston], and, says Citizens Financial Group
Citizens Financial Group
Citizens Financial Group, Inc. is an American bank headquartered in Providence, Rhode Island, which operates in the states of Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, Massachusetts, Michigan, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island and Vermont. Citizens is a wholly owned...
, for “serving as an innovative literacy model throughout the nation.”