The Estes Valley Sunrise Rotary Club and the Longs Peak Rotary Club are partnering with the Estes Park Learning Place (EPLP) for this Centennial Grant humanitarian project.
The Estes Park Learning Place, a non-profit organization, is dedicated to supporting and inspiring students of all ages in their educational pursuits, and to nurturing a life-long love of learning. Founded in 1998 as an innovative skill-building center for learners of all ages, EPLP became a charitable non-profit organization in January 2003 and serves the greater Estes Valley community. EPLP offers one-to-one tutoring which strives to meet students at their current level, create a learning plan based on individual learning styles and needs, and cultivate students' learning so they may reach their highest potential.
There is a real need in the Estes Valley for an adult component to the work that the EPLP is already doing. This is distinctly not an adult-learning program such as English as a second language, but a set of innovative programs to help adults understand what the children are learning. Through experience, EPLP knows that the adults in the home of their client children may not have a background in such subjects as algebra, geometry, physics, or even English literature. The intent of this humanitarian project is to provide the parents or other custodial adults with a basic understanding of:
* STEM subjects (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics)
* English literature
* Computer usage (many students are issued iPads)
The goals of this program are to help adults understand the subjects that their children are learning and to strengthen familial bonds. As students learn in school, their knowledge and understanding can exceed that of their parents - at least in the minds of the students. This can lead to a lack of respect, disobedience, and other discord in the home. This program will help the adults to relate to what the students are learning.
As envisioned, the program will consist of group-learning sessions for adults as opposed to the one-on-one sessions that are important for students. Some joint sessions with the children may be included for computer usage, etc. We would also like to include some parent-child sessions for younger students that might include planting and nurturing seedlings that can be transferred to a plot in our community garden in the growing season. This grant will used for the twelve months to get this innovative program started and to evaluate participation and results.
The Sunrise Club and the Longs Peak Club are contributing $500 each toward this grant which we would like to match with $2,000 from District 5440 for a total grant of $3,000 for the Estes Park Learning Place. Volunteer Rotarians from both clubs will be involved in developing the program and may be involved in the ongoing program if appropriate.
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