The Educational Foundation of Lower Florence County presented a $5,000 check to Florence County School District Three Tuesday to support the district’s partnership with Reading Partners and to improve literacy among early childhood and elementary students.
Reading Partners connects volunteers with struggling readers for one-on-one tutoring to help students build strong literacy skills, gain confidence, and discover a passion for reading. Reading Partner volunteers meet with students for 45-minutue tutoring session twice a week. Reading Partners has been operating in FCSD3 for three years and serves students at Lake City Early Childhood Center and Main Street Elementary School.
“The purpose of the foundation is to fund educational programs in Florence County School District Three which increase the academic performance of its students, with an emphasis on literacy and numeracy,” said Jamie Daniels, chairman of the foundation. “This initial donation is to provide support for Reading Partners and to ensure schools have the resources necessary to improve literacy among primary and elementary students.”
Daniels said the donation is from proceeds from the foundation’s first Mardi Gras Ball held last February. He added the foundation hopes to raise twice as much with the next Mardi Gras Ball in February 2017.
“Florence County School District Three’s mission is to ensure all our students are college and/or career ready,” said Laura Hickson, FCSD3 superintendent. “Literacy is one of the cornerstones for our students’ success. We are extremely appreciative that the Educational Foundation of Lower Florence County is working hand in hand with us in support of our mission.”