Foster Grandparent

Featured Story:
Diane Kelley

In a fifth grade class at Kermit Booker Elementary, students are busy mastering the art of learning. If you listen past the noise in the classroom, an encouraging, patient voice can be heard. That voice would be from Diane Kelley, Foster Grandparent Team Leader.

Diane has been serving as a Foster Grandparent for 5 years. Catholic Charities Foster Grandparent Program provides much-needed support and services to children in need throughout the southern Nevada community. Foster Grandparents focus on literacy and tutor, mentor and assist children that have been identified as at risk students.

“The kids I work with want to read better and learn. When I see them improve, it’s amazing. If I can help just one child succeed, then I feel I’ve done something,” she said. In Nevada there is a high rate of students who are illiterate or behind the level they should be reading at. Diane explained that this can start a cycle that leads to problems later in life.

“I was working with a fifth grader who only had a first grade reading level. It’s embarrassing to those students and they take on an unpleasant behavior to cover it up. When these kids get pushed through the system, they often drop out when they get older,” she said.

Fortunately, through the efforts of Diane and other Foster Grandparents,many of the students who receive extra attention and instruction show improvement. In some cases, they even flourish.

“One female student scored very low on the Comprehensive Reading Test and lacked self-esteem. I taught her to think positive and just answer the questions to the best of her ability. When she took the same test later, she scored higher than ever before and now will be able to move on to the sixth grade. “She wrote me a letter thanking me for the tools to help her read and write,” Diane said.