Investors Bank Senior Market Manager Linda Martin signs a check for Big Brothers Big Sisters of Mercer County. She is cheered on by Cecilee M. Abney, left, Investors Bank Assistant Vice President and Branch Manager in South Trenton and Anita Hanft Director of Community Outreach at Big Brothers Big Sisters of Mercer County.
Big Brothers Big Sisters (BBBS) of Mercer County has received two grants from Investors Bank in partnership with the Roma Bank Community Foundation to help fund a pilot bilingual, after-school, one-on-one mentoring program for the 2015-2016 school year.
The two grants, totaling $10,000, will help bring students in the Spanish Club of Notre Dame Catholic High School in Lawrenceville to Woodrow Wilson Elementary School in Trenton to mentor 15 first- through third-graders classified as English Language Learners. These children all come from homes in which Spanish is the primary language, often making it hard for them to keep up with their English-speaking peers; the pilot program hopes to close the learning gap.
BBBS of Mercer County applied for the grants from the Investors Foundation and Roma Bank Community Foundation. Roma Bank became part of Investors Bank in early December 2013. The foundation supports non-profit organizations that enrich the communities served by Investors Bank.
The goal of the sessions is to provide guidance in ensuring that the elementary students are proficient language users, able to succeed in school, participate in society, find rewarding work, appreciate and contribute to American culture, and pursue their own interests and goals throughout their lives. In turn, the high school students will increase their Spanish language ability and become more intimately familiar with the local Latino culture through their relationships with the children.
The one-hour a week after-school lessons will span eight months and be supervised by a BBBS bilingual case manager. Literacy-based activities will include: drawing favorite pictures of stories, using graphic organizers to summarize stories, making flash cards for vocabulary words, playing reading comprehension board and word games, using hand and finger puppets to retell stories and writing creative stories. Funds are needed to provide transportation for the high school students to travel to the elementary school, special bi-lingual curricular materials, the BBBS case manager and snacks for the students.
BBBS of Mercer County still is fundraising for the remaining monies necessary to run the program. Interested parties should contact Anita Hanft at (609) 656-1000. In addition, a BBBS 5K Run/Walk & Healthy Living Fair on Saturday, September 26, will benefit the program. Visit bbbsmercer.org to register or for more details.
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