Barbara Hammond, Ray Oglethorpe and Mimi Robinson. PHOTO BY JOSHUA KODIS

The Learning Alliance hosted its annual Donor Launch Party at the John’s Island Club, sharing the exciting news of progress made by students within the school district, along with upcoming plans to further the nonprofit’s Moonshot Mission of having 90 percent of Indian River County children reading at grade level by the end of third grade.

“To say that last year was a spectacular success would be an understatement. It was truly one of the best years we have ever had in the Learning Alliance and in the School District,” said Ray Oglethorpe, TLA founder and board chairman.

“We have gone all the way from 31st in 2019 to seventh in the State of Florida. Twenty-four positions in four years. If that doesn’t get your heart going that your generosity is making a big difference, nothing else will,” he added.

The school district achieved a 60 percent literacy rate overall, the highest to date, and nearly one-third of the schools achieved 75 percent proficiency.

Through TLA programs, as many as 4,500 children in kindergarten through third grade receive in-school, afterschool and summer tutoring, made possible through the generosity of donors.

Over the past 13 years, TLA had discovered that a significant number of children from economically disadvantaged neighborhoods were entering kindergarten unprepared to learn.

To address the issue, TLA provided support for more than 400 Moonshot families with pre-school aged children, supplying them with more than 5,500 books, literacy engagements and connecting them to resources to ensure that the children enter school ready to learn.

“All across the board, donor generosity, the Learning Alliance and this school district are firing on all cylinders,” said Oglethorpe.

He also spoke about the August 2023 launch of the Moonshot School at Vero Beach Elementary, one of the toughest schools in the district in terms of poverty and behavior.

“We are going to make that a model school to see how we can turn around schools that need help. It’s morally outrageous that a country as rich as ours could allow so many kids in third grade to fail so early in their life,” added Oglethorpe.

“It’s because of this work that’s been going on over the last 13 years that we have started to see these third graders coming in each year and getting better and better and better,” said Oglethorpe, before introducing School Superintendent David Moore.

“Because of your commitment, hard work and ongoing contributions, we’ve seen a drastic change. We’re here to celebrate not only the work that we have done, the impact that we have had, but also the impact that we will have moving forward,” said Moore.

He told the crowd that the “success of the entire system” depends on this public-private partnership and noted that once 90 percent of students are reading on grade level in third grade, funds directed toward remediation could then be used to increase teacher salaries and provide other student opportunities.

At a recent Florida Chamber annual Meeting & Future of Florida Forum, it was announced that Florida has set its sights on being a top 10 economy by 2030, said Barbara Hammond, TLA CEO and co-founder with Liz Remington.

“The reason that the work that we’re doing is so important is because we need a talent pipeline. If it’s cut off in third grade [due to illiteracy], we don’t have the talent pipeline we need to be a top 10 economy,” said Hammond.

The keynote speaker, Matt Higgins, RSE Ventures CEO and author of “Burn the Boats,” told the crowd, “What matters most is reading by third grade.”

For more information, visit TheLearningAlliance.org.

Photos by Joshua Kodis