(Photo courtesy of SMART)
SMART (Start Making A Reader Today) announces the Give Your Heart to SMART Campaign, running from February 15 through March 25. The goal of the campaign is to raise $25,000 in six weeks, equating to $1000 for each of our 25 local schools in Crook, Deschutes, Jefferson and Grant Counties. This money will be utilized to support books and materials for SMART students and volunteers in Central Oregon through the end of the current school year.
SMART has been providing one-on-one literacy support to children in Central Oregon for 24 years and depends entirely on local and statewide donors to support programs in our area. Provided at no cost to our school partners, the SMART program costs about $300 per child for a year of SMART – this cost covers the cost of new books for students; volunteer recruitment, screening and training; on-site program management; data collection and analysis; as well as program research and evaluation. Each child participating in SMART receives two new books each month to take home and keep and read with their families and each volunteer receives between 2 and 10 hours a year of training, depending on their role with the SMART Program. There are two paid staff members in the Central Area, who cover the day-to-day needs of the program serving 650 children and nearly 400 volunteers, as well as the marketing and fundraising.
You can Give Your Heart to SMART by logging onto the SMART website: www.getSMARToregon.org and clicking the “DONATE TODAY” button on the homepage. Donating to SMART today is an investment in brighter, more successful futures for Oregon children.
About SMART® (Start Making A Reader Today)
SMART, Start Making A Reader Today, is a statewide nonprofit organization that envisions an Oregon where every child can read and is empowered to succeed. We partner with schools around the state and engage community volunteers to read one-on-one with PreK-3rd grade children, helping to strengthen literacy skills and encourage a love of reading.
Over the past two decades, SMART has steadily grown to become Oregon’s largest volunteer literacy program. Children in the program receive 14 new books throughout the school year to keep and read with their families. Together, with support from communities and schools around the state, SMART is improving the reading capacity of Oregon’s children. Visit www.getSMARToregon.org or call 541-355-5601 to learn more about SMART.
