What's up with REAP?

Amidst the chaos of the past six weeks, REAP has been planning how to move forward even though we can’t work with teachers and students in person. COVID-19 arrived just as we were about to complete our pre-service teacher training at Georgia College.

Our amazing Literacy Leaders worked feverishly to develop and present REAP’s first-ever online virtual training session in April, with the students attending remotely from home. We’re thrilled that these young women and men will be armed with knowledge and skills to successfully teach reading and assist struggling readers.

REAP’s dedicated team jumped into action to respond to the COVID challenge, seeking solutions to keep our training on track. This led to some very positive outcomes:

more online resources
We created and published more video and online support for the teachers we’ve already trained.

online training components
We created new virtual learning sessions for the components of our program that can be successful online.

planning to support at-risk students

We developed a plan for our most at-risk schools to support the inevitable and unplanned slide their struggling readers will face.We’re partnering with administrators and instructional coaches to support these children while providing a deeper learning opportunity for their EIP/Intervention and SPED teachers.

Although we really, really miss working with teachers and kids, we’re excited about the potential for technology to expand our reach. It will enable us to provide greater resources to metro Atlanta and, ultimately, to begin training teachers throughout Georgia.

REAP needs you

REAP’s work is more important than ever. Struggling readers will begin the next school year having missed more than two months of learning. They will very likely fall even further behind their peers. We need your help to continue working with teachers to help repair the COVID/summer reading slide of their most at-risk students.

Every nonprofit has been hit hard by the COVID-19 situation, which has created an especially challenging scenario for REAP:

COVID-19 required substantial investments in technology and human resources.
Program fees aren’t coming in because training has been cancelled or delayed.
We’re unable to collect crucial year-end learning data to bolster our fundraising efforts.
Donations and grants are at an all-time low.

Our efforts to keep moving during this crisis have been rewarding but costly. We’re grateful that some of our REAP Literacy Leaders have provided support at a reduced rate or for free. Even so, REAP is facing serious financial consequences at a time when teachers and kids need us most.

Help us fund teacher training to get readers back on track

We know times are tough. If you’re able, please consider donating to REAP so we can keep training teachers to help readers get back on track. They have a lot of catching up to do and EVERY child deserves to be able to read and have a bright future!