So, like, I have this weekly routine where I say goodbye to Jose, my third-grade student at Jackson Elementary in Altadena. Every Friday, it’s like, “Bye, Jose, I’ll see you Monday. Have a good weekend. Go Dodgers.” This kid is seriously obsessed with the Dodgers, especially Shohei Ohtani. He even went to Jackie Robinson Day at Dodger Stadium and rocked his new Dodgers cap with Ohtani’s name on it the next day at school.
Jose isn’t the most talkative kid, but if you hit the right chord, he spills all the tea. Turns out, he went to the game because we were reading a book about Robinson during our sessions. We always start with 10 minutes of read-aloud, and then it’s Jose’s turn to read and do worksheets. Sometimes we break down tricky words, and man, English can be so random.
After six months of tutoring, Jose and I were in sync, and I couldn’t believe the school year was almost over. Then, out of the blue, an email dropped on a Sunday night. No heads up, just like bam!
Apparently, the Trump administration was cutting funds for Reading Partners, the program I volunteer for. Like, what the heck? Jose and 54 other kids at Jackson Elementary rely on this program to catch up on their reading. And with all the challenges they faced this year, like the Eaton fire closure, these kids need all the help they can get.
As of now, it looks like some coordinators will still be around, but not under AmeriCorps. It’s a rollercoaster of emotions for sure. I wonder if the kids even know what’s going on behind the scenes. I hope Jose made progress during our time together. The books got harder, and he improved at sounding out words. But did I make a real difference? Who knows.
At our last session, we were knee-deep in “James and the Giant Peach.” We may not reach the happy ending, but at least we can see the nasty aunts meet their demise with this funding reprieve. Maybe there’s hope after all.
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Deborah Clark is CEO of EdSource.
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So, like, that’s the story of me and Jose. Not sure if I made a huge impact, but hey, at least we tried, right?
