Preface Project 3rd Annual Childhood Literacy Benefit Gala
Founder and Executive Director, JT Wu & Heather Phillips, Director of Educational Development
Preface is a national 501(c)(3) philanthropic initiative that empowers communities to combat early childhood illiteracy and secure foundational educational opportunities for the next generation!
Their model works by first pairing a local high school and local elementary school together as Preface Partners. Their expert teams then work with the high school administration to select and train student leaders (“Preface Ambassadors”) in clinically-endorsed educational best practices, including finger-led reading, dialogic responses, voice inflections, and dyadic scaffolding.
Preface Ambassadors culturally and linguistically reflect the communities they serve, allowing them to maximize engagement capacity with young students most in need of educational assistance and mentorship.
Ambassadors work directly into the elementary school classrooms to act as free supplemental resources for local educators on the ground, allowing for highly personal engagement and reading assistance in small group classroom settings!
Preface’s relational model has helped elementary school students make gains in literacy skills nearly twice as fast as their peers, while high schoolers gain firsthand service experience and a newfound appreciation for careers in education.
Additionally, Preface has been recognized by the GA Dept. of Education as an innovative World Languages program and is advised by experts affiliated with a wide variety of institutions, including the Georgia Leadership Institute for School Improvement, McKinsey & Company, J.P. Morgan Chase, Microsoft, and Princeton University.
