Jacksonville, Fla. April 6 – Girls Inc. of Jacksonville (GIJ) has been awarded funding support from the parent organization Girls Inc. National. This funding acts as both an acknowledgement of past successes and an incentive to continue providing Girls Inc. Literacy Programming to program participants in Jacksonville.
Girls Inc. is committed to providing literacy programming to girls in Kindergarten to third grade (ages 5 to 9) as part of their Girls Inc. Experience. Girls Inc. of Jacksonville provides Strong, Smart and Bold Literacy Programming, Girl Smart Programming, as well as issuing Dynamic Indicators of Basic Early Literacy Skills (DIBELS) Evaluations to program participants.
Reading proficiently by the end of third grade is a crucial marker in a child’s educational development. Failure to read proficiently by this time is linked to higher rates of school dropout. GIJ is committed to ensuring all program participants read at their grade-level before making a grade transition.
Elementary Program Manager, Felicity Price-Forehand had this to say of Girls Inc.’s Literacy Program; “The Girl Smart Program provides a roadmap for our facilitators to engage girls and their families in literacy in an amazing way! We enjoy incorporating the phonics and Reader’s Theatre activities during our weekly programming for our girls. Most importantly, the girls enjoyed the gifted text from Girl Smart entitled “Astro Girl” so much that it inspired us to dedicate a themed week for the young ladies during their summer camp experience.”
GIJ will use the funding from Girls Inc. National to support the already-established Literacy Program and to continue providing crucial literacy programming and evaluations to program participants, ensuring all participants are reading at the correct level and making on time grade transitions.
About Girls Inc. of Jacksonville
Girls Inc. of Jacksonville is dedicated to assuring high-impact services for a growing number of girls and expanding advocacy efforts by setting bold goals and a clear strategic direction. It focuses on the development of the whole girl. Staff members help the young ladies value themselves, take risks and discover inherent strengths.
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