a case for an unrestricted gift january 8, 2015. why bookspring? we launch children into a world of...
TRANSCRIPT
A CASE
FOR A
N
UNRESTRIC
TED G
IFT
Januar
y 8, 2
015
WHY
BOOKSPRIN
G?
We
launch
child
ren in
to a
wor
ld o
f
read
ing
TWO CLOSELY RELATED SOCIAL PROBLEMSE C O N O M I C I N E Q U A L I T Y
In 2010, the top 10% of Texans earned about 48% of all income.
- Fort Worth Star-Telegram
In Austin, socio-economic separation has steeply increased in past 10 years.
– City of Austin
I N A B I L I T Y T O R E A D
In the United States, adult literacy is as low as 65%. - (Department of Education, 2012)
In Travis County, the rate of adult illiteracy is estimated at 13%. (TCALL, Texas A&M)
IN T
HE U.S
. TODAY
,
36 MILL
ION A
DULTS
CAN'T REA
D BETT
ER THAN
THE
AVERAGE
3RD GRADER
. Digital Text:
email, instant m
essage,
blog, comm
ents,
aggregation sites,
standard websites, w
ikis,
forums, m
ailing lists,
newsgroups.
Traditional Print:
letters, mail, form
s, books,
magazines, pam
phlets,
essays, poetry, textbooks,
fiction, travel guides,
meeting notes, signs,
code, notes, maps.
Medical Com
munications:
consent forms, m
edicine
labels, and health care
information, charts,
graphs.
mor
e at
: htt
p://w
ww.p
rolit
erac
y.or
g/the-
cris
is/th
e-us-
cris
is
*http://nces.ed.gov/naal/kf_demographics.asp
Imagine
modern
daily life if
you could
not really
understand
…
RESARCH S
HOWS
EARLY
INTE
RVENTI
ON
MATTE
RS
A new
born's
bra
in is
only
about 2
5% o
f its
adult
wei
ght.
But by
age
3, it h
as g
row
n dra
mat
ical
ly.*
*http://www.zerotothree.org/child-development/brain-development/
BookSpring is unique in that develop the motivation to read in children from birth through elementary school.
Intrinsic motivation can be a well-spring for all other kinds of achievement. It can spark a desire to learn about other people, places, and things that can last a lifetime, including better health, employment, and overall quality of life.
CHILDREN’S ACCESS TO PRINT MATERIALS HAS POSITIVE ACADEMIC AND SOCIAL IMPACTS
• Improves children’s reading performance • Instrumental in learning basic reading• Causes children to read more, for a
longer time• Produces improved attitudes toward
reading and learning among children
http://rif.org/documents/us/RIFandLearningPointMeta-OnePager.pdf
ADDITIONALLY, POSITIVE RELATIONSHIPS WERE INDICATED IN FOUR ADDITIONAL OUTCOMES:
• motivation to and interest in reading;
• writing performance; • language development; and • academic performance in other
subjects.
http://rif.org/documents/us/RIFandLearningPointMeta-OnePager.pdf
But are in need of future study.
DEFINITIONS OF MOTIVATION
Motivation represents "those psychological processes that cause the arousal, direction, and persistence of voluntary actions that are goal oriented.” (Mitchell, 1982)
“Willingness to exert high levels of effort towards organizational goals, conditioned by the effort's ability to satisfy some individual need.” (Robbins, 1993)
BOOKSPRING INSPIRES THE MOTIVATION TO READ IN AUSTIN
C L I E N T S
• Infants to age 3
• Early childhood
• Grade school
• Parents
• Caregivers
P R O G R A M S
• Choice-driven book donations
• Parent education events
• Teacher & schools donations
• Medical community engagement
• Public awareness
•MOTIVATION•ENGAGEMENT•KNOWLEDGE•CHOICE•FREEDOM
BOTTOM LINE: EARLY EXPOSURE TO READING WORKS!
BOOKSPRING’S SOLID RECORD & BROAD REACH
• 40 years of service to the Central Texas
• Serves 300 parents, 40,000 children, and distributes 100,000 print books annually
• Good relationships with school districts and childcare providers
• Strong and effective volunteer base
• Solid alliances with other literacy and early childhood service organizations
• Maintains strategic partnerships with 38 health and social service providers at 116 sites.
BEST USE O
F FU
NDS
PR
OC
ES
S O
F DE
TE
RM
I NI N
G P
RO
GR
AM
SU
CC
ES
S
WHAT DOES SUCCESS LOOK LIKE?
CAN WE MEASURE OR DESCRIBE AN INCREASE IN MOTIVATION TO READ IN CHILDREN? YES! THERE ARE MANY WAYS.
• qualitative and quantitative methods – stories and spreadsheets
• standardized academic tests and psychological measures
• surveys, focus groups, and interviews
• self-reporting about attitudes and perceptions
• observation and textual analysis
• social network analysis to determine the scope of indirect reach
THE ABILITY TO POINT AND REACH OUT TYPICALLY STARTS AT 3 MONTHS
WHAT IS GOING ON IN THIS PICTURE?
WHAT DO YOU WANT TO KNOW MORE ABOUT? LET’S
FIND OUT, TOGETHER!
FORMATIVE & SUMMATIVE EVALUATION
Formative: Evaluates if our programs and services are really providing the effects we intend;
Summative: Provides information that shows if the effects we’re having are providing value for the people we serve.
Program evaluation vs. formal research: The former is aimed at improving practice, the later is aimed at improving knowledge which guides the practice.
Practice informs research, and vice-versa.
REFLECTIVE PRACTICE = AGILE MISSION-BASED WORK
http://www.serviceuserandcarertoolkit.co.uk/steps.html
THIR
D PART
Y
PROFE
SSIONALS
AND
SCHOLARLY
RESEARCHER
S
ARE REALL
Y IM
PORT
ANT
OPPORT
UNITY
FOR
CHANGE
PR
I OR
I TY
IS
SU
ES
TO
AD
DR
ES
S
WHERE WE’VE BEEN AND ARE NOW
Total budget has ranged between $500,000 and $750,000 since 1999.* New government funding may be available but will be highly competitive.
*http://www.guidestar.org/
SUGGESTE
D PRIO
RITIE
S
For u
se o
f gift
ed fu
nds
1) Sustain and expand current programs
2) Create a public outreach and awareness campaign to keep reading front-of-mind
3) Evaluate programs and act upon findings
4) Initiate 2-3 innovative new “low-cost” pilot projects
5) Keep operational costs low and begin planning for a future endowment campaign
Total Request
$500,00
0 Current Programs $200,000 Outreach/Awareness $100,000 Program Evaluation $75,000 General Operations $75,000 New Initiatives $50,000
PROJECTED ALLOCATION FOR $500,000 GIFT
POSSIBLE NEW INITIATIVES THIS FUNDING WOULD ALLOW:• A project through retail spaces that cater to low income
families.
• A project designed to enhance reading with pre-writing skills.
• A project that links reading and acting out books
• A project focused on English second language development (22+ languages native to AISD students).
• A project to increase academic performance in subjects other than reading, such as science and math (pattern recognition).
• A project that compares digital versions of books to print versions.
• A project designed to increase interactivity between parents and children through storytelling, possibly with use of video.
STAKEHOLD
ERS,
PART
NERS, AND
CHAMPIONS
CO
NT
I NU
E T
O L
EV
ER
AG
E A
ND
GR
OW
NE
TW
OR
K
STEW
ARD
AND EVA
LUAT
E CURRENT
PART
NERS, SPO
NSORS &
FINANCIA
L SUPP
ORTERS
Individual, Corporate, Foundation, Government, Non-Profitshttp://www.bookspring.org/our-story/partners/
http://www.bookspring.org/2015-read-a-thon/sponsors/
http://www.bookspring.org/our-story/financial-supporters/
POSSIBLE NEW PARTNERS, FUNDERS, AND DONORS• ARTS ORGANIZATIONS (MIND POP, ZACH, BALLET AUSTIN,
POLLYANNA THEATRE COMPANY, AUSTIN CREATIVE ALLIANCE, CENTER FOR DIGITAL STORYTELLING)
• LIBRARIES (UT AUSTIN, WELLS BRANCH)
• CLOSELY RELATED LOCAL, STATE, and FEDERAL AGENCIES (CITY OF AUSTIN, TEXAS COUNCIL ON DEVELOPMENTAL DISABILITIES, TEA, IES, HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES)
• EXPERIENCE-CENTERED FAMILY AND YOUTH FOCUSED BUSINESSES (LEGO, SIMON MALLS, FIESTA FOODS, HEB, SCHLITTERBAHN)
• ACADEMIC CENTERS AND INDEPENDENT EVALUATORS (UT, A&M, AEA)
AND MOST IMPORTANTLY…
Presented by Emily Ball [email protected]: @emicicwww.oldstoriesnewmedia.com
www.bookspring.org