Program Details
Agents of Change
Student Mentoring
Nightingale-Bamford
Nightingale-Bamford, an all-girls K-12 independent school located in New York City has partnered with the Sisulu-Walker Charter School, a K-5 public charter school located in Harlem, NY. With a school population that is 87% on free or reduced lunch and many of its students reading below grade level, the main purpose of this partnership is to help increase literacy rates at Sisulu-Walker. As part of the Nightingale-Bamford 9th grade Agents of Change class, students receive instruction from early childhood educators on how to foster a love of learning, a level of comprehension, and a fluency in reading. The Nightingale students are then buddied up with 3rd grade Sisulu-Walker students and they work together throughout the semester. The Nightingale girls bring their own books to share with their buddies and often engage in reading and active discussions. The partnership between the Nightingale and Sisulu-Walker students not only allows for the students of Sisulu-Walker to improve their reading skills, but also it allows for the Nightingale student to learn the value of early childhood education, the significance of the charter school movement and the ability to make a change in the community.