Room to Read
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| Non-profit organization | |
| Industry | Education |
| Founded | 2000 |
| Headquarters | San Francisco, California, United States |
Key people |
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| Website | www.roomtoread.org |
Room to Read is a non-profit organization for improving literacy and gender equality in education in the developing world. Headquartered in San Francisco, California, and founded on the belief that "World Change Starts With Educated Children," the organization focuses on working in collaboration with local communities, partner organizations and governments. Room to Read develops literacy skills and the habit of reading among primary school children, and supports girls in completing secondary school with the relevant life skills to succeed in school and beyond.[1]
Room to Read is serving communities in ten countries in Asia and Africa: South Africa, Zambia, Tanzania, Sri Lanka, India, Nepal, Bangladesh, Laos, Cambodia, and Vietnam.[2]
History
John Wood, founder and board co-chair, launched Room to Read in 1999 after a trek through Nepal where he visited several local schools. He was amazed by the warmth and enthusiasm of the students and teachers, but saddened by the shocking lack of resources. Driven to help, John quit his senior executive position with Microsoft and built a global team to work with rural villages to build sustainable solutions to their education challenges.[1]
Beginning in Nepal, John and his Nepali Co-Founder, Dinesh Shrestha, started by working with rural communities to build schools (School Room) and establish libraries (Reading Room). John and Dinesh quickly recognized the need to expand the scope of work beyond libraries, and wanted to address the fact that many girls in the developing world are overlooked in the educational system due to cultural bias. To that end, in 2000, Room to Read began the Girls' Education program, which targets young girls and provides a long-term commitment to their education.
In 2001, co-founder and CEO Erin Keown Ganju spearheaded Room to Read’s expansion into Vietnam.[3] Since then, Room to Read's operations have expanded to include Bangladesh, Cambodia, India, Laos, South Africa, Sri Lanka and Zambia. In 2010, Room to Read celebrated its "Year of Tens," marking its ten-year anniversary with the opening of its 10,000th library in Nepal, along with the construction of its 1,000th school and support of its 10,000th girl through the Girls' Education Program.[4]
Core operating principles
- Global Footprint and Long-Term Engagement: Room to Read employs flexible program models that can be adapted locally. It focuses on developing countries with relatively stable governance where education can be prioritized, seeking strategic partnerships with governments and like-minded organizations.
- Community Engagement and Local Partnerships: The organization partners with communities to achieve its goals, challenging the local population to contribute to each project either financially, or through the donation of labor.
- Scale and Sustainability: Room to Read seeks to successfully demonstrate effective and cost-efficient program models so that governments and other non-profits can adopt its methodology and practices, thereby catalyzing long-term, systemic change.
- Diversified and Engaged Funding Base: Room to Read's donor base is diverse in type and location, raising at least 30% of its funding base through its global chapter network. It is committed to maintaining a low overhead ratio, with at least 80% of funding going directly to programs.[5]
Programs
Learning to read and write is an intricate process, especially for children who have had little or no exposure to written text. Room to Read bases its Literacy Program on global research and best-practices for helping students in text-poor communities become fluent readers. Its program addresses three key areas that are essential to these students’ literacy development: teacher training and support, reading materials, and learning spaces. Room to Read evaluates gaps across these areas and provide schools with tailored assistance to ensure students have the instruction and resources they need to develop strong literacy skills and a habit of reading. [6]
Room to Read’s Girls’ Education Program focuses on girls’ transitions into and through secondary school because that is where the biggest and most permanent gaps in gender equality in education take place. Room to Read supports girls to complete secondary school with the skills necessary to negotiate key life decisions. The program includes the following core components, which are implemented based on local conditions, individual need and grade level: life skills education, mentorship, material support, and family, school, and community engagement.
Chapter network
Room to Read has all-volunteer fundraising chapters in:[7] United States: Aspen Valley, CO; Atlanta, GA; Austin, TX; Boston, MA; Central NJ; Charlotte, NC; Chicago, IL; Cincinnati, OH; Columbus, OH; Dallas, TX; Denver / Boulder, CO; Fort Lauderdale, FL; Greenwich, CT; Houston, TX; Los Angeles, CA; Manchester, NH; Minneapolis / St. Paul, MN; Nashville, TN; New York, NY; Portland, OR; Salt Lake City/Wasatch, UT; San Diego, CA; San Francisco, CA; Seattle, WA; St. Louis, MO; Washington, DC; and Westchester, NY.
Canada: Calgary, AB; Edmonton, AB; Toronto, ON; Montreal, QC; and Vancouver, BC.
Asia: Hong Kong, China; Seoul, South Korea; Tokyo, Japan; Mumbai, India; Singapore.
Middle East: United Arab Emirates
Australasia: Adelaide, Auckland, Brisbane, Canberra, Melbourne, Perth, Sydney.
Europe: Edinburgh, Scotland; London, England; Brussels, Belgium; Paris, France; Munich, Germany; Rhein-Main, Germany; Amsterdam, The Netherlands; Zurich, Switzerland.
Results
Since its inception in 2000, Room to Read has impacted the lives of over 6 million children in the developing world by:[8]
- Constructing 1,450 schools;
- Establishing 12,522 libraries;
- Publishing 591 new local language children's titles;
- Distributing over 10,4 million children's books;
- Funding 13,662 long-term girls' scholarships.
Awards and recognition
- Library of Congress Literacy Award: 2014 David M. Rubenstein Prize[9]
- UNESCO Confucius Prize for Literacy: 2011[10]
- Fast Company / Monitor Group "Social Capitalist Award" — four-time winner;
- Charity Navigator four-star rating - seven-time winner;[11]
- Skoll Awards for Social Entrepreneurship 2004, 2006, and 2010;
- Attended Clinton Global Initiative
- Academy for Educational Development (AED), one of six 2007 "Breakthrough Ideas in Education";
- Reader's Digest's 'Best of America 2008'.[12]
- Named one of "Ten Innovative NGOs in Education" by the American University School of International Service[13]
References
- 1 2 "About Us". Official Website. Room to Read.
- ↑ "Our Programs". Official Website. Room to Read.
- ↑ Wood, John (2006). Leaving Microsoft to Change the World. New York: Harper Collins. pp. 119–125. ISBN 9780061121074.
- ↑ Scher, Eddie (12 November 2010). "Financial Times Features Room To Read and ‘Year of Tens’". Skoll Foundation. Archived from the original on 19 November 2010.
- ↑ "Room to Read". Charity Navigator.
- ↑ Annual Report 2009, Room to Read. (p.16)
- ↑ "Chapter Network". Official Website. Room to Read.
- ↑ Results as of October 2011. Room to Read posts its result numbers quarterly.
- ↑ "Library of Congress Literacy Award Winners Announced". News from the Library of Congress. 30 August 2014.
- ↑ "UNESCO International Literacy Prizewinners 2011". UNESCO.
- ↑ "Financials". Room to Read. Retrieved 3 March 2013.
- ↑ "Awards & Recognition". Official Website. Room to Read. Archived from the original on 16 March 2009.
- ↑ "Ten Innovative NGOs in Education". International Relations Online (American University School of International Service). 12 September 2014.