From the Director:
Dear Friends,
Although the official school year is winding down,
PLC tutors continue to work with our students after
the school year ends in order to prevent “summer
slide.” Research shows that on average, students
lose one month of learning over the summer months,
making it particularly important for students who
struggle to continue to maintain the skills they have
worked so hard to improve. Summer tutoring also
strengthens the bond between tutor and student
allowing them to further develop their relationship
and continue to practice learning strategies. When
students return to school in the fall, they are prepared
to excel because of the work they have done during
summer vacation.
Our need for tutors is ongoing—we currently provide
tutoring to 38 students with students on the waitlist in
North Myrtle Beach, Surfside and Aynor. Anyone who
is interested in tutoring should contact our office as
soon as possible so we can pair you with a student.
We are thrilled to have received grants from the
following organizations: Dollar General Adult Literacy,
($5,000), Oceanview Memorial Foundation ($9,000)
Kars for Kids ($750) and Bank of America ($10,000).
These generous awards help ensure that PLC not only
survives but thrives! We are making great strides to
enact our mission to improve literacy and also be the
center for literacy education and training in Horry
County.
Our dedicated volunteers are working hard on our fall
fundraisers—the Big Book Bazaar on September 10
and the Golf Tournament on November 14. See pages
2 and 4 for more information about these fundraisers.
They promise to be exciting events that we hope will
be well attended. We are still accepting gently used
books for the bazaar. Books can be dropped off
throughout the summer at our Surfside Beach office.
Please visit our Facebook page for regular updates on
PLC’s activities and for stories about the successes
tutors are having with our students. We are forever
grateful for the hard work of all our volunteers, not only
those who tutor, but those who work to ensure that the
organization runs smoothly. Such volunteers include
our board and committee members and those who
help out at various events. I am forever grateful to
those who lend their time and talents to Palmetto
Literacy Council.
Here’s to a wonderful summer season!
Sincerely,
Dodi
Dodi Hodges Executive Director
Sincerely,
Dodi Hodges
Executive Director
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Tickets for the Brunch & Browse with Dan Albergotti are available on our website:
https://app.mobilecause.com/e/ckp8nQ?vid=sbpr4
Thank You, Kayleena Nguyen and Jenny Jean for sorting the books that were recently donated for our Best Book Bazaar! If you have new/ gently used books to donate, please bring them by our office or contact us for pick up!
Bonnie Kelley & Dodi Hodges Inlet Queens Fundraiser
Miller-Motte Extern Jennifer Jean will be helping us out for the month of June. The office will be open from 9 am to 5 pm, Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday. Please feel free to come in and meet her!
Logophile
Preston McKever-Floyd
Tomorrow we can eat broccoli. Today is for ice cream. — Unknown
The word for this month is predilection, for no other reason than this word has arisen in my musings. Predilection is a noun characterized as having a strong preference or liking for something. This term appeared in English in the 18th century, derived from the Latin prae, “in advance” and diligere, “to select” yielding praediligere, morphing into the French prédilection, and translated into in English predilection in the mid-18th century, circa 1742. The synonyms for predilection are fondness, partiality, taste, penchant, soft spot, inclination, propensity, bias, and proclivity.
The hot days of summer reveal my strong fondness for cold foods and drinks, especially ice cream.
Carol Dey, Jasmine Dey and Tutor Bonnie Kelley
Bonnie and Jasmine were paired in January 2020. Jasmine, who graduated from tutoring on May 6, 2022, is now reading at grade level. When Jasmine first started with PLC she found reading to be a chore, and she was struggling at school. But her positive attitude and willingness to learn enabled her to improve her reading with Bonnie’s help. As Bonnie travels, she has included Jasmine as part of her trips by sending Jasmine postcards and bringing her souvenirs which has prompted lots of discussion and research. They used maps and books to learn more. Jasmine now enjoys a variety of books and reads for at least 20 minutes every day. It was difficult at first, but Bonnie and Jasmine’s parents were adamant about reminding her to read. Today, she can successfully use complete sentences and details from the story to demonstrate her comprehension skills. Although Jasmine has graduated, she and Bonnie are going to remain Pen Pals. We’re very proud of Jasmine and grateful for Bonnie, who made a special connection with Jasmine. __________________________________________
What is a Volunteer Liaison?
The Volunteer Liaison (VL) reports to the Executive Director (ED) and meet swith the ED regularly to review what is happening in their library area. Volunteer Liaisons are assigned once there are about 10 students being tutored in a particular area in the county. Their duties include:
1. Check-in with the students (and parents) and our volunteers every couple of weeks to see if they need anything. This involves assessing: What is working, what needs to be changed to improve, and how can we change it for improvement. Volunteers and parents will contact the VL first, if there is a concern.
2. Communicate with all stakeholders about upcoming events
3. Take and send us pictures of tutors and students, where we have permission
4. Administer the short progress assessments (DIBELS) every 3-4 months for the students in that library region
5. Check-in with the librarians to make sure we are doing our part and ask how we can help them
6. Make sure there are rack cards or flyers for the libraries
7. Report pre- and post-test scores to the Executive Director as well as the progress check assessments
8. Write a short summary about student progress as reported by tutor and based on progress assessments to give to ED as requested.
Our Executive Director will continue to do the student screenings (that first introductory meeting where the student reads to her) and attend school meetings when invited by the parents.
WE HAVE THREE NEW VOLUNTEER LIAISONS:
Veronica DeCicco – Chapin Memorial Library. [email protected]
Jan Leonhard – North Myrtle Beach Library. [email protected]
Marion Hernandez – Adult Literacy Program at Patrick Mobile Home Park. [email protected]
SPONSORSHIPS
All proceeds from the Charity Golf Scramble will directly benefit Palmetto Literacy Council. Funding offsets the costs to operate at no charge to the community, is used for volunteer training, curriculum and assessment materials, etc. Classroom teachers across Horry County consistently report that students who go through our tutoring program increase their reading and writing skills as well as increase their confidence. We encourage local businesses to participate in this fundraising event as sponsors and as participants. We couldn’t do our work for the community without the generous support of local businesses. Please consider this opportunity to promote your business, reach your target audience, and help a great cause. We will begin promoting our sponsors via our website, newsletters, and events every month through November. If you would like to include an offer for our swag bags or virtual swag bags, there is no additional charge to do so for our sponsors.
