Agency Details:

Generations Incorporated

Generations Incorporated, founded in 1991, unites older adults and youth in partnership to strengthen individuals and communities.

Description:
Generations Incorporated unites older adults (55+) and youth in service to strengthen individuals and communities. We are the Boston host to Experience Corps®, a national program that engages older adults in community service with a strong focus on education. Generations Incorporated programs take place during school hours and after school in public elementary schools and Boys & Girls Clubs within the Boston communities of Dorchester, Roxbury, Jamaica Plain, South End, South Boston and Revere.

Our Experience Corps Program is focused on intergenerational Literacy & Mentoring and Community Service Learning:

READING COACHES - Volunteers serve two to four times per week with children in the 1st through 4th grade who are reading below grade level. Pairs read, write and speak together for 45 minutes using a structured literacy curriculum that focuses on comprehension. Volunteers meet with children one-to-one, in both school and after-school settings. Goals are to improve children's literacy skills by an average 2.5 reading levels and to develop meaningful intergenerational relationships.

CLASSROOM LITERACY - Volunteers serve in kindergarten and elementary school classrooms two times per week, for one and one-half hours during each literacy period. In the classroom, the mentors help the children understand the basic literacy skills taught by the teacher. Volunteers work with children in small groups, providing extra support for children and lowering the adult:child ratio inside the classroom.

LUNCHTIME MENTORS - Volunteers are paired with 4th or 5th grade students who have been referred by their teacher. Mentoring sessions are one-to-one during the school day at the lunch break or after school for one-hour sessions. The goal is to make learning fun, with an emphasis on literacy.

History:
The program began operating in the Boston area in 1991 based on the national "Magic Me" program whereby youth develop relationships with elders in nursing homes. The local organization was incorporated as an independent non-profit. In 1998, the organization severed its ties with the national organization, and using the same principles but also adopting the renowned Reading Coaches model, named the organization Generations Incorporated. It has since grown to assist 2,290 students each week with their literacy skills.

Contact people:

Katie Klister, Volunteer Recruitment Associate, (phone), (email) Lera Shawver, Program Manager, (phone), (email) Judy Krenzel, Director Of New Programs, (phone), (email)

Office fax number: (617) 422-0626

Address:

25 Kingston Street Fourth Floor Boston, MA 02111 (See a map)

Web Site: http://www.generationsinc.org

Directions:

Nearest Metro/Subway Stop: Downtown Crossing,   Walk distance (in minutes): 5 min.   Nearest Bus Stop: Silver Line, 10 min. minute walk

Miscellaneous Information

What is the type of the agency?
	501(c)(3)
Does the agency conduct CORI checks?
	Yes

Last updated on August 3, 2009