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Thank you for your interest in volunteering as a tutor-mentor with Wright to Read. Please complete the following form to help us determine if you would be a good fit for our program. 
Please read our general program description below and initial underneath to confirm you have read and understand the description.
Who we serve:
  • Primarily elementary school students in the City of Alexandria, partnering with Alexandria City Public Schools who refer children who need additional support in reading
  • Focusing on underserved populations, 86% of our students come from diverse racial/ethnic backgrounds and 80% qualify for free/reduced lunch school programs, and 55% come from multilingual households

Commitment:
  • 1-year (12-month) commitment to work with your matched student after you begin meeting with them or a commitment to being a short-term substitute tutor-mentor as needed. This includes keeping in contact with your student during the summer months, although meetings may be more infrequent.
  • The strength of our program lies in the sustained relationship developed over multiple years (our mentorships last on average ~3 years). As you evaluate your fit for this program, please take into account any potential life changes (moving out of the area, life and/or career changes) that may prevent you from developing a multi-year relationship with a child. We are especially interested in volunteers who are planning to remain in the area for the next couple of years.

Where and when:
  • In-person at a local public library or another public location such as a community center, or an ACPS school after-school site if available.
  • 1-hour session a week at a consistent day and time

What we provide:
  • Volunteer training (occurs via online Zoom meetings)
  • Books, supplies, and resources to use with your student
  • Access to reading specialists and educators to assess students annually and coach volunteers on how to build targeted literacy skills.
  • Periodic in-person enrichment and engagement events planned by Wright to Read staff to engage tutor-mentors, students, and their families
  • Sharing of tips through workshops, e-newsletters, and social media

Next steps:
  • Please complete the questions below to confirm your interest and eligibility
  • Take part in an online interview with Wright to Read program staff
  • Complete a background check (typically a 2-4 week process)
  • Attend volunteer onboarding/training (~2 hours of live training and ~2 hours of viewing of pre-recorded sessions will be expected prior to being matched). Please note annual training workshops and opportunities (in-person and virtual) are provided and while not mandatory, are strongly encouraged.
  • Match to be made in Spring 2026 (depending on timing of completed background check and # of students on waiting list). We match new students through April and then pause for the summer, but we are always looking to have new volunteers ready to go!

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* 1. Initial Here to indicate you have read the program description above

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* 2. Contact Information

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* 3. Wright to Read volunteers must be over 18. Are you over 18?

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* 4. How did you learn about the Wright to Read program?

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* 5. If you selected "Current WTR Volunteer" Please provide a name in the comment box below.

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* 6. In a few sentences, why are you interested in serving as a tutor-mentor for our literacy program?

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* 7. Do you have any experience working with youth (including teaching, coaching, mentoring, or tutoring) in a volunteer, personal, or other non-professional capacity? If so, in what capacity? Please tell us more about the ages of the youth you were working with, or interaction with youth within your own families.

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* 8. What opportunities have you had working and collaborating in diverse, multicultural and inclusive settings? Tell us more about your experiences interacting with individuals of different cultures or backgrounds.

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* 9. Wright to Read is an "out-of-school-time" program, and therefore tutoring-mentoring occurs after the school day or on the weekends. Additionally, tutor-mentors are encouraged to meet and/or stay connecting during the summer months. Do you believe your schedule will be able to accommodate these expectations?

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* 10. Wright to Read launched another model of the program in 2023 called our Site-based Pilot, in which tutoring will take place 1 day/week from approximately 3:00-4:00pm in an ACPS elementary school library/classroom for a 7-9 month period during the school year. Tutors are asked to arrive no later than 2:45 pm at the designated ACPS school site and depart by 4:05 pm, so flexibility during this time period is a must.

This model includes on-site staff support and access to a variety of literacy curricula and activities to use with your student. Parents and guardians will be responsible for arranging transportation home for the student with the staff.

Indicate here to let us know if this site-based model is something you may be interested in being part of:

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* 11. We require a minimum of a 12-month commitment for ~one hour a week starting when you are matched with a student. Our most successful matches occur with volunteers who are interested in developing these relationships beyond a year. Looking ahead to possible work or family obligations you may have down the road, do you feel like you have both the availability and desire to meet the minimum 1-yr commitment for our program, with the potential to keep your mentoring relationship going beyond that?

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* 12. What do you hope to gain from this volunteer experience?

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* 13. Anything else you would like to share about yourself or that you have questions about? 

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