Foster Grandparent Program

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Overview

The Foster Grandparent Program engages older Americans in service to youth/students within schools and educational settings. Foster Grandparents are under the supervision of teachers/other school professionals such as principals. Seniors 55 years or older perform one-on-one service with young people. Income-eligible senior volunteers in the Foster Grandparent program receive a modest stipend to help offset the costs of volunteering. Some examples of volunteer activities include the following:

  • Helping preschool children prepare for elementary school
  • Tutoring elementary, middle, or high school students in schools for academic success (i.e. help with reading, writing, math, etc.)
  • Reading a story to a second-grade class
  • Helping a kindergarten student practice penmanship and writing their name
  • Providing emotional support to children
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Facts

  • In 2020, Foster Grandparents in New Mexico served more than 1,160 young people (Source: tinyurl.com/nmstatsamericorps)
  • 67 percent of 4th graders are reading below grade-level expectation (Source: tinyurl.com/67percentstat)
  • Every year, over 1.2 million students drop out of high school in the United States alone. That’s a student every 26 seconds – or 7,000 a day (Source: tinyurl.com/26secondsstat)

Be part of the change to improve these statistics!

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50 YEARS