Officials from Target and CPS highlighted the Children’s Literacy Initiative program at a Wednesday morning event at Cardenas Elementary. In fall 2010, the program won a $22 million “validation” grant – the highest tier – in the U.S. Department of Education’s Investing in Innovation contest.
Press Room
Catalyst-Chicago Highlights CLI and Target's Partnership in CPS Classrooms
January 20, 2012
CLI Receives $450,000 Donation from Townsend Press to Launch the Camden Literacy Project
December 15, 2011
Children’s Literacy Initiative (CLI) has received a $450,000 donation from Townsend Press, a highly regarded educational publisher based in Camden County, NJ. The Townsend donation will launch a new multi-faceted venture, the Camden Literacy Project.
CLI Names Dr. Kelly Hunter as Organization’s Next Executive Director
December 12, 2011
Hunter Selected in National Search, Served as Interim Executive Director
PHILADELPHIA—December 12, 2011— Children’s Literacy Initiative’s (CLI) Board of Directors today announced the appointment of Dr. Kelly Hunter as executive director, effective immediately. Hunter has served as interim executive director since founding executive director Linda Katz announced her retirement in July.
CLI Partner, Target on Track to Give $1 Billion for Education by 2015
December 7, 2011
CLI's partner in Chicago,Target, highlights their education programs in an Interview with Laysha Ward, President of Community Relations, on a Forbes online forum.
CLI Included in University of Pennsylvania's Center for High Impact of Philanthropy Top Ten List to Optimize Holiday Giving
December 2, 2011
Children's Literacy Initiative has been included in a top ten best recommended opportunities to make a meaningful difference in people's lives list by the University of Pennsylvania's Center for High Impact of Philanthropy. The new High Impact Holiday Giving Guide was written for individuals/organizations seeking to optimize the social impact of their philanthropic activities during this traditional season of giving.
CLI Receives $500,000 Donation from Target
November 17, 2011
as part of the retailer’s longstanding commitment to education and reading. This donation will be used to expand CLI’s Model Classroom program in Chicago Public Schools and create an online professional development portal. This contribution is part of Target’s commitment to helping more U.S. children reach the critical academic milestone of reading proficiently by the end of third grade. This fall specifically, Target is donating a total of $50 million to educators, schools and nonprofit organizations across the country to help ignite a love of learning among children.
“We are thankful for Target’s commitment to ensuring all students are proficient readers by third grade,” said Kelly Hunter, Ed.D., Interim Executive Director of CLI. “We know teachers are key in-school factors for success, and the online portal, along with our training, coaching and resources, help teachers by providing them with the knowledge to be successful.”
Annie E. Casey Foundation Campaign for 3rd Grade Reading Highlights CLI as a Successful Organization
August 2, 2011
Extreme Makeover: Classroom Edition could be the new theme of Chicago’s Lázaro Cárdenas Elementary School. Unlike the show, however, no cameras are rolling when the school’s principal and five third-grade teachers enthusiastically organize and rearrange classrooms during the summer of 2011 to support more effective teaching techniques in reading and writing.
Innovation That Delivers: i3 at Work
July 8, 2011
Innovation That Delivers: i3 at Work, presented by Children’s Literacy Initiative (CLI), was held on June 29, 2011 in Newark, NJ. This national meeting came at the conclusion of the first year of CLI’s Modeling Exemplary Literacy Instruction project, and brought together project participants and CLI stakeholders to reflect on the past year and strategize for the next phase of the project.
We would like to extend our most sincere appreciation to all attendees, speakers, panelists and to our sponsors – Cigna and Lakeshore. We are grateful to Newark Public Schools for helping to make this event—the first of five annual meetings—such a success.
We had over 100 participants in attendance for featured presentations and discussion sessions exploring the following topics:
- Ensuring quality teaching for all students
- Leadership perspectives on education reform
- Implementing innovation in four i3 partner districts – Camden, Chicago, Philadelphia and Newark
We look forward to seeing you at future CLI events and encourage you to visit our website for updates about our i3 project during the coming school year.
CLI Places 3rd in Wells Fargo’s “Vote for your Favorite Philadelphia Charity”
May 5, 2011
CLI would like to thank Wells Fargo and everyone who voted for us. Wells Fargo distributed voting ballots to their Philadelphia clients with CLI listed as a voting option. CLI placed 3rd out of the other Philadelphia charities listed on the ballot and received a donation of $15,000. Thank you for all of your support and confidence in our work
Children's Literacy Initiative Featured in The Pew Charitable Trusts 2011 Prospectus
April 12, 2011
In some of the region’s poorest neighborhoods, only one in three children learns to read by the third grade. The Children’s Literacy Initiative is one of 19 organizations receiving Pew Fund support to help children develop the skills needed to succeed in school. In its early years, the Children’s Literacy Initiative was devoted to getting good books into the hands of parents and caregivers. To have greater impact, the organization began working with teachers of children from prekindergarten through third grade to improve the reading skills of their young charges.
Children's Literacy Initiative Featured in the Philadelphia Social Innovations Journal
April 12, 2011
Founded in 1988 by Linda Katz and Pat Federman, the Children’s Literacy Initiative (CLI) began as a book fair for the general public. After hearing a North Philadelphia father express his desire to begin reading regularly to his four-year-old, Linda saw the need to address the literacy gap between inner-city and suburban students...
CLI Participates in the Annie E. Casey Foundation’s “Inaugural Funders’ Network Gathering”
March 11, 2011
Last week, CLI’s Executive Director Linda Katz participated in the Annie E. Casey Foundation’s “Inaugural Funders’ Network Gathering” for the Foundation’s Campaign for Grade-Level Reading.
Mobilizing philanthropic leadership around moving the needle on 3rd grade reading over the next decade, the Campaign examines the challenge of ea...rly literacy from a variety of approaches and causes, hoping to encourage a cohesive set of programs and interventions that target three “core assurances”:
- Quality teaching for every child in every setting every day.
- Locally owned community solutions for improving school readiness, attendance, and summer learning.
- A rational, outcomes-accountable system of care, services, and family supports for children, from birth through third grade.
The Gathering, hosted in Washington DC, welcomed more than 200 attendees and a dynamic slate of presentations and discussions about the urgency in achieving 3rd grade reading proficiency for all children. CLI was invited to participate as an exemplary literacy program – the only invited program working on the issue of teacher quality in grades K-3.
Inquirer Article About the Effectiveness of CLI's Programs
February 28, 2011
Giving 3rd graders the reading habit
Teaching program is being tried in 10 Phila. schools.
Good teachers are developed, not identified.
By Dan Hardy
Inquirer Staff Writer
Chambersburg, PA School District Excited to set up CLI Classrooms
February 7, 2011
Students can expect a unique educational experience in specialized classrooms to be showcased in Benjamin Chambers Elementary and Stevens Elementary schools.
Newark Education Trust Chooses CLI
January 21, 2011
As one of 11 programs succeeding in Newark. "There is a great need and role for the Trust," said Caryn Henning, a regional manager for the Children's Literacy Initiative. "The Newark Public Schools district will now have a strong partner to help communicate to the community at-large which programs need and deserve support and scaling up. The Trust will also be able to provide the District access to the whole Local Education Fund Network where they can hear from other Districts, and share their own experiences, in what really works."
CLI Featured in Education Week
December 28, 2010
AVERTING A HUMAN-CAPITAL TRAIN WRECK IN EDUCATION
CLI Featured in "The Nation" Magazine
December 22, 2010
Quote: "...scaling up CLI would be an excellent use of the much-hyped $100 million five-year donation to the Newark schools from Mark Zuckerberg, the 26-year-old founder of Facebook and thirty-fifth richest person in America."
CLI Presents at the Learning Forward National Conference
December 14, 2010
Children's Literacy Initiative Presented
"Teacher Pipeline: Using Model Classrooms for Clinical Practice"
at the Learning Forward National Conference (formerly known as the National Staff Development Council)
CLI Presenters:
Cameron Voss, CLI Deputy Director
Pat Federman, CLI Co-Founder/Regional Manager (West)
Bridget Pullin, CLI Content Development Manager
Stacey Dougherty, CLI Model Classroom Teacher at John B. Kelly School
Jennifer Robinson, Center of Pedagogy, Montclair State University
Some of the speakers were: Beverly Hall from Atlanta Public Schools, Douglas Reeves from The Leadership and Learning Center, Andrew Hargreaves from Boston College, Michele Norris the host of "All Things Considered" on NPR, and Thomas Kane from the Gates Foundation.
The presentation examined the successful partnership between an urban nonprofit (CLI) and two large school districts (Philadelphia, Newark) that created a system of model classrooms to help preservice teachers improve their literacy instruction and prepare for a lifelong careeer.
