The saginaw county commission on aging, as grantee for americorp seniors foster grandparent program of saginaw county, michigan is requesting three-hundred seventy-seven-thousand dollars ($377,000) in…

The saginaw county commission on aging, as grantee for americorp seniors foster grandparent program of saginaw county, michigan is requesting three-hundred seventy-seven-thousand dollars ($377,000) in federal funds for the first year of a three year grant to expand its program into the adjacent areas of BAY and midland counties. The federal investment will be supplemented by a minimum of fourty-one thousand EIGHT hundred eighty-nine dollars ($41,889) in non-federal resources. At least 58 (FIFTY-EIGHT) americorp senior foster grandparent volunteers will serve this expanded area. Of this number, 58 will be placed in outcome-based assignments. The primary focus area of this project is education, specifically school readiness and K-12 success. Volunteers will directly serve approximately 218 children acting as mentors, nurturing positive behaviors, tutoring in literacy and math skills, and providing other assistance as identified by teachers to assist students with special needs. Approximately 1,200 students will benefit indirectly from the presence of a program volunteer in the classroom. At the end of the grant period, pre-school children served by foster grandparent volunteers will have attained early educational skills, be able to appropriately interact with other children in a learning environment, and be ready to participate in the K-12 environment. Those children served in kindergarten and beyond will benefit from improved language and literacy skills, possess improved socialization skills, and experience reduced absenteeism.