Nominee: Experience Corps Bay Area Issue Area Served: Education

Experience Corps Bay Area (ECBA) has been working with San Francisco, Oakland, and now Berkeley communities for over 15 years, training adults 50 and older to be literacy tutors and mentors to students in underserved public schools. ECBA works with seniors and schools to provide much-needed academic enrichment for K-3 grade students. This intergenerational exchange has been proven to boost students’ academic performance and improve the health and well-being of older adults while building stronger communities.

ECBA’s mission is to provide for communities in three key ways:

1) We help boost students’ academic performance: In a study done by Washington University, researchers found that: “students who work with an Experience Corps tutor for a single school year experience more than 60% greater gains in two critical literacy building blocks compared to similar students who were not served by Experience Corps.” (2009) This means that students that were far-below the proficient level in these key literacy skills can move into a proficient range of academic performance. California’s Board of Education has set a goal that all students score at a proficient level in English Language Arts by the end of 2013. ECBA is helping students reach this goal.

2) We provide a healthy, productive environment within which older adults thrive: A 2009 study by John Hopkins researchers found, “after a year with Experience Corps, about two-thirds of the least active members reported that they became significantly more physically active and more engaged in social and community events.”

Additionally, Washington University found:

• 84% of Experience Corps members report that their circle of friends - a key measure of social well-being - increased as a result of their involvement in the program.

• 86% of Experience Corps members say their lives have improved because of their involvement with the program.

3) We help build safer and more sustainable communities: Studies continually show that three times as many students who cannot read proficiently by 4th grade will end up in the juvenile justice system. To address this troubling trend, ECBA has spent the last 15 years helping teachers better support students.

The Annie E. Casey Foundation found that “Experience Corps serves the neediest children and those who are at the highest risk of academic failure. Nearly 90% of the students served by Experience Corps are low-income children of color.”

Nationally, our organization has proven that in schools with Experience Corps, referrals to the principal for classroom misbehavior decreased by half; other schools remained about the same. With students remaining in classrooms that are supported by our highly-trained volunteers, ECBA is helping to ensure consistent and high-quality education is provided to all.

This “Triple-Win” approach has led to ECBA growing each year, with new partnerships in underserved areas of Oakland and Berkeley for the 2013-2014 school year. Our program helps entire communities as we strive for a more informed and empowered set of new generations, while not forgetting the value and abilities of those that came before.