TLA Newsletters

A Message from the TLA CEO

August 1, 2020

Summer 2020

Dear Friends of TLA and KRC,

As we wrap up this unusual summer, I am still in awe of the dedication, innovation, and compassion I saw from so many people across our community. Teachers adapted and created new learning environments for students, nonprofits reached out in innovative ways to help where needed, and philanthropists dug deep to ensure our community had the resources needed to support one another. Once again, we came together as a community to lift each other up in this time of uncertainty and need.

Below you will find a few highlights of some of the amazing work that took place despite the setbacks and challenges the summer of 2020 brought.

Sincerely,
Barbara Hammond

Challenge Accepted! Moonshot Academy Goes Virtual

This summer, TLA’s Impact Team redesigned the Moonshot Academy curriculum to be delivered online. Over 80 families were served through both one-on-one tutoring and whole-group instruction. We saw a lot of impressive growth. Check it out!

MSA Virtual Summer Quick Data:

31% to 91%
First graders scored an average of 31% on their vocabulary pre-assessments, and increased to an average of 91% on their post-assessment.

60% to 93%
Second graders increased from a 60% pre-assessment average to a 93% average on the post-assessment.

56% to 82%
Third graders increased from a 56% pre-assessment average to an average of 82% on the post-assessment.

2 Times the Expected Growth
Oral reading fluency improved by twice the expected growth in a 4-week period for 2nd and 3rd grade students.

Delivering Books and Smiles

COVID-19 may have grounded our Moonshot Fleet, but that hasn’t stopped us from getting books to children this summer! TLA’s Marie O’Brien has worked with local camps to deliver books so we can keep students reading. By the end of this summer, we will have distributed 2,500 books!

Tune Into Reading: 5 Week Progress Report

In our June newsletter, we told you all about a new program called Tune Into Reading that we would be piloting this summer with students from Pelican Island Elementary. With 5 full weeks under our belt, we have some exciting progress to share with you!

So far, we have seen...

138 minutes
of average student usage per week, exceeding our goal of 90 minutes. This has helped students achieve

.81 Independent Reading Level Growth
in the first 5 weeks of the program. This means they are on track to

Grow 2 Levels in 12 Weeks,
which equates to

1 Full Year of Reading Growth!

Moonshot Survival Kits

Thanks to a generous grant from United Way, we were able to assemble and distribute Moonshot Survival Kits to our hardworking Moonshot Reading Captains and their families. Each kit contained hard-to-find PPE supplies such as toilet paper, reusable cloth masks, gloves, sanitizer wipes, a magnetic dry erase board with markers and an eraser, and books to give away to children. A generous matching donation from Reading Captain Donna Remsnyder allowed us to provide two bags: one for each Reading Captain, and one for them to give away to someone in the community.

And The Award Goes To...

Our Moonshot Moment campaign has been recognized by the Florida Campaign for Grade-Level Reading’s 2019 Pacesetter Honors!


We received honors in Big Tent Collaboration, Aligning What We Know (Science) With What We Do (Practice), and Strengthening Pre-K to K-12 Transitions, in addition to being named as a Pacesetter Finalist for Moving the Needle in Impact Areas.


Additionally, Moonshot Moment is also in the running as a finalist for the following five impact areas:

  • School Readiness
  • Summer and After School
  • Parent Success
  • Healthy Development
  • Grade-Level Proficiency