Dalton-Whitfield Archway Partnership on Local Television & Chamberlink

On July 31, Archway Partnership Professional Melissa Lu went to the local television station, WDNN North Georgia Television, and hosted several on-camera interviews with representatives from local organizations who are involved with Archway efforts. The following week, Chamber of Commerce President Brian Anderson interviewed Archway chair and vice-chair Lynn Laughter and Don Cope about Archway initiatives.

The Archway Partnership is also the featured story in the August edition of Chamberlink, published by the Greater Dalton Chamber of Commerce. 

Readers to Leaders Hosts 3rd Annual Celebration of Literacy

Readers to Leaders recently hosted its third annual community-wide celebration of literacy for nearly 600 people in the Dalton-Whitfield community!  Of those 600, 149 were volunteers and 279 were children! A total of 276 free books were given away to attendees! Against the festive backdrop of games, live story book characters, and food, reading took center stage. There were cozy reading circles for children of all ages where stories were read by community volunteers. Reading-related crafts and activities further conveyed the importance of literacy. Below are a few snapshots from the event. To view all the photos, visit the Readers to Leaders Facebook page here. 

E3Z

With the early childhood Race to the Top funds, the State of Georgia has chosen 11 regions of high needs to apply to be an Early Education Empowerment Zone (E3Z) region, one of which includes Dalton-Whitfield County. If the Dalton-Whitfield County region gets chosen, benefits include $1.2 million dollars for birth to five efforts. The Archway Partnership recently collaborated with other local organizations to facilitate and organize a presentation for the E3Z search committee. The Committee visited Dalton-Whitfield County on July 29, and recipient regions will be announced later this fall. Photos of Phil Ledbetter from Catoosa Family Connections addressing the search committee on July 29 can be viewed below. 

Assessment Report Out

In an effort to achieve the vision of getting children in Dalton-Whitfield County on grade level reading by third grade, a special assessment team of local data experts in industries from Shaw, Mohawk, and J&J have worked tirelessly for months to determine if there is local consensus on what constitutes “third grade reading level.” The group has thoroughly reviewed the existing data and has developed a report on their findings. The data has been delivered to several leaders in the community, including city and county school representatives, teachers, and the Archway Partnership Executive Committee.

Dalton Whitfield Archway Partnership Teams Up with Local Educators to Share Best Practices at Georgia Department of Education (DOE) Conference

At a recent Georgia DOE conference, Archway Education Professional Katy Green collaborated with Kathryn Wilhoite and Maria Khote from Dalton Public Schools to share results from Archway’s pilot Saturday Academy program. Roughly twenty practitioners from around the state had the opportunity to learn about best practices and lessons learned.  Feedback was very positive, with many communities interested in learning more about Saturday Academy and the Archway Partnership.  

A link to the presentation can be viewed here. Photos of the three presenters can be viewed below. 

Conference presenters from left to right: Kat Wilhoite, Dalton Public Schools Teacher; Katy Green, Archway Education Professional; and Maria Khote, Dalton Public School Parent Educator

Presenters Kat Wilhoite (far left) and Maria Khote (right, next to Kat) discuss the presentation with participants after the conference. 

Tri-University Research Team Notes Significant Learning Gains in Saturday Academy Participants

The Dalton-Whitfield Archway Partnership recently facilitated Saturday classes for families of three-to-five year old children at the Mack Gaston Community Center. These classes were designed to promote school readiness skills and empower parents to serve as their child’s first teacher.

An evaluation of the pilot by researchers from the University of Georgia, the University of Tennessee-Chattanooga, and the University of West Georgia indicated that participants experienced significant gains in school readiness skills, oral vocabulary, and an improvement of the family home literacy environment. Thirty families participated in the pilot study. Over 80% of participants were Spanish speaking only, and all classes and information were in a bi-lingual format. Parents reported a desire for more classes.  In addition, they indicated in a survey that they are reading more with their children, have a better understanding of child development, and now have a better understanding of all that they can do to help their children at home. An article highlighting the program's success and published by the Daily Citizen Newspaper can be read here. Pictures of the program can be viewed on our Facebook photo albums here. 

Book Drive Continues With Major Donations from Chattanooga Food Bank, Salvation Army, and Private Donors

This spring, Readers to Leaders hosted a formal book drive to supply book giveaways including Book Nooks, Pre-K registration, and Summer Power Lunches.  In light of the tremendous interest in these giveaways, our need has outpaced our books.  Fortunately, local donors have risen to the occasion to facilitate our summer giveaways.  Recently, the local Salvation Army donated two large bins of books; the Dalton branch of the Chattanooga Area Food Bank donated 352 lbs. of books; and private donors have cleaned out their basements (and their neighbors’ basements) to support the cause. A great big thank you goes to local community members, Tom and Ginger Mathis, who collected books from family and friends for Readers to Leaders at a personal event in their home. 

We are still in need for more books, as community demand is more than our current supply. If you or someone you know has books to donate, contact Archway Partnership United Way VISTA Melissa Morrison at 706.712.0961 or readers2leadersdw@gmail.com. 

Pictures of recent book donations can be viewed below.

Archway Partnership United Way VISTA Melissa Morrison smiles at the load of books in her car donated by the Salvation Army.

Books donated by the Dalton branch of the Chattanooga Area Food Bank were loaded onto a scale (left) before being brought to the Archway Partnership office. The weight totaled 352 lbs. (right)!!!