Buffalo News

By Brent Rollins

Volunteering is a great way to serve your community while you are doing something that you are passionate about. I’ve been a longtime community volunteer, but a recent opportunity further opened my eyes to the importance of community service.

I discovered Read to Succeed Buffalo’s (RTSB) Experience Corps tutoring program through an advertisement. The program connects retired folks like me with Buffalo Public Schools students in grades K-3 who struggle with reading. Since our nine grandchildren live out of town and I wanted share the lessons of my life’s experience, I decided to volunteer. Older generations have a responsibility to give back and prepare younger generations for what’s to come.

At my first meeting with RTSB staff, I was impressed with their passion and understanding of how to best help children learn to read. It’s no secret that literacy rates in any city can be improved. RTSB broke down the local statistics thoroughly and had a plan to tackle this issue, which really appealed to me. When I walked out of my first meeting I knew this organization was something I wanted to be a part of, and I soon discovered that it was something there was a great need for me to be a part of.

As I wrap up my second year as an Experience Corps tutor, I can’t help but reflect on how my perception of this program has changed over time. I knew I would spend time reading with children, but I didn’t fully appreciate what a challenge literacy is for some young children in poverty-stricken communities. Children who struggle with reading are often frustrated in the classroom and that frustration can lead to perceived or real behavior problems. This is the first step in the “school-to-prison pipeline” that primarily plagues low-income communities of color.