This past Thursday, Global Scholar Michael D. presented the culmination of his work with Reading Partners, an organization that helps provide individualized literacy support to under-resourced communities/schools. Through his description of working with the nonprofit, Michael opened the eyes of the Poly community to the impact of his work, the effect it had on him, and the process of completing his goal.
Michael has volunteered for Reading Partners for 4 years and has outwardly expressed how positive his experience with them has been. He has found that he not only believes in their mission to help increase literacy through their programs, but he has found their ability to create immediate change and the subsequent long term change remarkable. His work with them has helped to engage students with reading, expand reading centers/libraries, and helped to ensure the quality of education in communities around LA.
Michael also acknowledged how beneficial this experience was to him. He discussed how grateful he felt for the opportunity to work on a project that could help so many people. Ultimately, Michael did receive the Grant Proposal money he asked for however whether or not he will be able to supply the 14 reading centers around LA with books is unsure due to the pandemic. Whether his money will get redirected to online initiatives or go to supporting the centers is still in question.
However, one thing was clear, when describing the process, Michael stressed the importance of believing in his mission, and being passionate about his project, as these were the factors that pushed him to success.