Financials & Impact

Volunteer is in our name, and we truly believe in building programs and products that encourage the volunteer spirit.  With the tight economy, we’re committed to engaging volunteers and keeping overhead and program costs low.

Despite the economic challenges, we expanded services into 7 states and currently serve:  Florida, Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana, North Carolina, Tennessee, and Texas.  Here is a snapshot of our services:

Consider:

• The majority (81%) of our Teen Trendsetter™ Reading Mentors programs operate in neighborhoods that the Office of Juvenile Justice considers “areas of need”  – where children are more likely to drop out of school, live in poverty, or become involved with crime. Teen Trendsetters was started in 2002 with 30 teens in Florida and now exists in 7 states in the South.  This is a unique program:  teens mentor second and third graders who are at least 6-months behind in reading.  61% of the mentees are minorities and so are 60% of the teens who are terrific role models. An incredible 98% of Teen Trendsetters graduate from high school.
• Our Family Literacy Academies provide a learning center for parents who never earned their high school diploma.  At 11 sites across the southern U.S. we offer the opportunity for parents and their young children to come to school together.  Parents in our academies improve an average of two grades in one year.  The Great Recession has been most difficult for parents without a high school diploma and we’re committed to helping them achieve their goals while serving as good role models for their children.  Of note, children in our program for at least 2 years do enter kindergarten on par with their peers – a change that greatly increases the likelihood that they will graduate.
• Our new eco-VolunteerUSA is an opportunity for everyone to help conserve our nation’s state parks.  We’ve helped build boat docks for persons with disabilities, pulled nonnative plants, and more.  Join us by signing up at your state park or by searching our database for a project to adopt.