Family Learning Institute- Ypsilanti Tutoring program

The Family Learning Institute-Ypsilanti program is a program of the Family Learning Institute, a non-profit that tutors children in both Ypsilanti and Ann Arbor. See https://familylearninginstitute.org/. The program's mission is to accelerate student progress in reading and to increase students’ confidence in their academic abilities and motivation to read. Our vision is to bring all children in Ypsilanti Community Schools up to grade level in reading by the time they finish elementary school. The FLI-Ypsilanti program is now entering its seventh year of existence. It has succeeded, together with school instruction, in bringing dozens of students up to grade level in reading. It has grown substantially in size each year, from eight students to between 50 and 70 for each of the last yeasr. We have received financial support from a local bank, University Bank, American Recovery Act funds allocated by the Washtenaw County government, and the state of Michigan. The FLI-Ypsilanti program draws from students who live within the 48197-48198 zip code areas, economically disadvantaged communities. The pandemic caused economic insecurity, health challenges physical and mental, and the loss of many hours of schooling for many Ypsilanti children and their families. In the spring 2024 MSTEP tests 10.5 percent of the fifth graders at Erickson, and 12.9 percent of the fifth graders at Holmes, were found to be proficient or above in English language arts. This is significantly lower than the statewide average of 44 percent in 2024, which itself is a result lower than found in pre-pandemic tests.

The Family Learning Institute - Ypsilanti program tutors students from two Ypsilanti Community Schools elementary schools who are one to three years behind grade level in reading. See https://annarborobserver.com/leveling-the-reading-field/ The FLI-Ypsilanti program provides students one-to-one, completely individualized, systematic reading instruction by trained community volunteers, many of whom are retired professionals. Students are tutored one hour each week, with intensive instruction in phonics, and the goal of mastery of foundational skills in the early school years. Students work with an assigned tutor either onsite at Holmes and Erickson Schools before school, or online from home after school. All lesson plans are written for tutors by a reading specialist and an additional staff member who works under the direction of the reading specialist. Second through fifth grade students are referred by their teachers. The program hopes to enroll fifty to seventy students from the Ypsilanti Community Schools during the 2025-2026 school year; seventy is the number who participated in the program in the 2023-24 academic year. To reach our goal, we will need approximately twenty more tutors this year.