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Learning Cove marks 10 years with Tecumseh Public Schools; students averaged 5.1 reading-level gains this year
Summary
The Learning Cove, facilitated by Covenant Church, reported 10 years of volunteer tutoring with 155 students served overall and an average gain of 5.1 reading levels for participating students this year; the group requested community volunteers and noted the current reading specialist will remain on payroll through summer.
Kathy Smith, director of The Learning Cove, told the Tecumseh Public Schools Board on May 18 that the volunteer literacy program has served 155 students over the past decade and that participating students gained an average of 5.1 reading levels this year.
"I am the director of The Learning Cove," Smith said, explaining the program’s structure: volunteer coaches are trained by a reading specialist, students receive one hour of individualized instruction after school, and the program partners with Tecumseh Public Schools to bus students to sessions.
Smith said The Learning Cove began in 2016 in partnership with Covenant Church and an Ann Arbor program model, moved locations after COVID, and now operates at Patterson School and other district facilities. She described the program’s volunteer staffing — a mix of retired teachers and community volunteers — and said about 35% of funding comes from community donations.
The presentation included program metrics: 155 unique students helped over ten years, 22 students served this year, about 20 coaches and tutors currently active, and a summer reading program purchased by The Learning Cove for participating students. Smith also noted the program’s reading specialist will remain on payroll through the summer to check in with students and that the group is searching for a replacement when that staff member retires.
Nut graf: Trustees were given specific program outcomes and a clear volunteer recruitment ask; the presentation framed The Learning Cove as a community-supported complement to district reading instruction that provides targeted, phonics-based coaching for early readers.
Board members thanked the volunteers and asked how the program coordinates with classroom reading specialists; Smith said parents provide permission for students to participate and tutors align to school assessments and objectives.
The Learning Cove asked for community volunteers and directed interested people to an application on its website and to its Facebook page. No formal board action was requested or taken during the presentation.
The discussion highlighted The Learning Cove’s long-term community role and concrete outcomes, including the reported 5.1 average reading-level gain for participating students this year.
