SOUTH END NEIGHBORHOOD TUTORS INC

WIZARD'S WARDROBE IS A FREE AFTER-SCHOOL ONE-TO-ONE LITERACY TUTORING PROGRAM FOR ELEMENTARY SCHOOL CHILDREN IN ALBANY'S SOUTH END NEIGHBORHOOD. WE PAIR A STRUGGLING READER WITH A WELL-TRAINED, CARING TUTOR WHO HAS THE COMPLETE FLEXIBILITY TO TAILOR INSTRUCTION TO FIT THE LEARNING STYLE OF THEIR STUDENT. OUR TUTORS ARE VOLUNTEERS WHO ARE VETTED AND UNDERGO 13 HOURS OF INITIAL TRAINING PLUS CONTINUOUS SUPPLEMENTAL TRAINING. TUTORS MEET WITH THEIR STUDENTS FOR TWO 90-MINUTE SESSIONS PER WEEK DURING THE SCHOOL YEAR. TUTORS WORK ON STRENGTHENING READING, WRITING AND PROBLEM-SOLVING SKILLS WITH A WIDE VARIETY OF HIGH-QUALITY INSTRUCTIONAL MATERIALS. OUR PROGRAM IS QUANTIFIABLY EFFECTIVE. NONE OF OUR STUDENTS READ AT GRADE LEVEL WHEN THEY COME TO US. AFTER ONE YEAR IN THE PROGRAM, 30% ARE READING ON GRADE LEVEL. AFTER TWO YEARS, 60% ARE READING AT AT GRADE LEVEL. WE ARE CONTINUOUSLY WORKING TO EXPAND AND IMPROVE OUR PROGRAM. FOR THE LAST FOUR YEARS, WE HAVE FIELDED AN ODYSSEY OF THE MIND (OM) TEAM COMPRISED OF WIZARD'S WARDROBE STUDENTS. OM IS AN INTERNATIONAL COMPETITION THAT FOSTERS THE DEVELOPMENT OF CREATIVE PROBLEM-SOLVING SKILLS TEAM-BASED CHALLENGES. THE PROGRAM REQUIRES PARTICIPANTS TO WORK AS A TEAM TO CREATE INNOVATIVE SOLUTIONS TO COMPLEX CHALLENGES, PULLING FROM VARIOUS FIELDS, INCLUDING SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY, ENGINEERING, MATHEMATICS, LITERATURE, AND THE ARTS. IN 2024 AND 2025, OUR TEAM HAS ADVANCED TO THE STATE-WIDE COMPETITION. LAST YEAR, WE LAUNCHED A SATURDAY ENRICHMENT PROGRAM AND TOOK STUDENTS ON A FIELDTRIP TO THE MUSEUM OF NATURAL HISTORY IN NEW YORK CITY, BROUGHT THEM TO CAPITAL REPERTORY THEATER FOR A STORY-TELLING EVENT, AND BROUGHT IN A LITERACY- BASED MAGIC SHOW. LAST SUMMER, WE AGAIN ORGANIZED A SERIES OF FIELD TRIPS FOR OUR STUDENTS. WE TRAVELED TO THE CONEY ISLAND AQUARIUM, TACKLED THE ROPES COURSE AT WILD PLAY, AND SWAM IN THOMPSON LAKE.