What has the Education Committee been up to... ?

For close to a decade, the Education Committee (EC) of the Garden Court Community Association (GCCA) provided volunteer tutors to the Henry C. Lea School at 47th and Spruce Street. Its focus was new readers who had fallen behind their peers. For two decades, the EC held an annual Book Choosing event, also for new readers.

Since the pandemic began, the EC has not been able to offer in-person literacy support to Lea’s students. When COVID subsides, it looks forward to seeing these programs flourish again.

But the Education Committee hasn’t been idle…..

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It’s already thinking about how the Lea School will be affected over the next five years by the University of Pennsylvania’s recent multi-million dollar grant. The grant will likely facilitate the school’s ability to move forward with project-based learning, an interest championed by Lea’s principal, Aaron Gerwer. The EC is preparing to offer the school a multi-disciplinary project that is in line with this educational philosophy, one that will focus students’ attention on actual issues in our community.

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The EC has received a $10,000 donation, earmarked for the Lea School, from Dr. Vivianne Nachmias, a former chair of the EC and the creator of several very popular enrichment programs for Lea’s students. The intent of the donation is to inspire excitement in writing while simultaneously strengthening students’ writing skills. The EC will incorporate a writing component into the multi-disciplinary project it is developing and will award prizes for excellence in writing.

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The EC also administers the Cheryl Roebuck Memorial Music Scholarships that support supplementary study opportunities for students pursuing proficiency in music. Student musicians who live within or attend school within Garden Court’s boundaries may apply for funds. A total of $1,000 has been available annually.

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The EC also maintains a Book Nook at the Laundromat at Pine and 48th Street so that kids have something fun to read while parents do the wash.

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The EC has just recently started delivering brand new books for early readers to the Little Library at Malcolm X Park. Each week, there will also be some great books for teens. The EC is also putting children’s books into GCCA’s Little Library located at 4603 Cedar Avenue. (The lower shelf is for children and teens.)