Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur
701 E> Columbia Avenue
Cincinnati, OH 45215
AmeriCorps and Educational Assistance Initiative at Corryville Elementary School
Notre Dame Mission Volunteers, founded by the Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur in 1992, has been placing volunteers at sites nationwide to work alongside the economically disadvantaged, especially children, to promote literacy, educational performance and life skills. AmeriCorps is a Federally-funded service program, commonly referred to as the domestic Peace Corps, that brings together citizens of diverse backgrounds to serve communities in the areas of education, public safety, human needs and the environment. In 1995, the Sisters of Notre Dame Mission Volunteer Program joined forces with AmeriCorps to offer greater community service in financially-limited areas. Notre Dame AmeriCorps is committed to developing better students by strengthening schools and communities.
Our members tutor children and adults (literacy, GED, and ESL), organize after-school enrichment activities, model and teach conflict resolution/parental effectiveness, and involve community professionals in the learning process. Members are placed at individual sites in teams, living and working in the same area. Notre Dame AmeriCorps volunteers work at several sites within Cincinnati, most within the urban core. This proposal to the Charles H. Dater Foundation seeks a $25,000 award to help support one of these volunteers and to underwrite a Sisters of Notre Dame teacher's aide, each of whom would work with twenty-five students at Corryville Catholic Elementary School and each of whom would work with children in the early grade levels. These earliest grades are critical -- especially for children of low-income families who may not have strong reading skills and/or a strong educational background -- in that they set the stage and tone for all to come after.
Corryville Catholic Elementary School is in the Corryville neighborhood. Corryville has violent and property crime rates that in most categories more than double the national rates. Over 90 percent of its residents are renters. Household income is roughly $25,000. Fifty-six percent of people live in poverty. (Statistics per Niche, which utilizes current Census and FBI data.)
Of Corryville Catholic students, over 90 percent receive government assistance for school lunches. Over 80 percent receive Ed-Choice tuition vouchers, a criteria for which is that family income is no more than 200 percent of the Federal poverty level. But in the area of educational demographics, the students are breaking the cycle of poverty. Four of every five graduates go on to college-preparatory schools, securing $4,927,152 in aid since 2000. The Sisters of Notre Dame AmeriCorps and Educational Assistance Initiative contributes to this success, and in the coming year will be especially important given that many students remain behind academically due to the pandemic.
Program Results:
As a result of the overall Corryville initiative, of which the AmeriCorps project is an important component (as is the Choices for Children mentoring program), 17 of our 21 graduates this past academic year (2022-23) are now attending private high schools, including DePaul Christo Rey (2), St. Ursula Academy (4), LaSalle High School (3), St. Xavier High School (3), Roger Bacon High School (2), and Purcell Marian High School (3). Another student will attend the School for Creative and Performing Arts. Taken together these students are receiving approximately $663,600 in financial aid and scholarships.
Website:
http://www.sndohio.org Amount: $25,000
Date: October 2022
