Your AARP
HELPING KIDS READ FOR 30 YEARS
AARP Foundation Experience Corps celebrates an anniversary
Student Greyson Smith celebrates a milestone with tutor Karima Amin at Dr. Lydia T. Wright School of Excellence in Buffalo, New York, in 2023.
Laurie Bowers, 73, owes a lot to being a good reader. “Not everyone needs a college degree, but everyone needs to be able to read, write and communicate,” Bowers says. A former report technician for the police department, Bowers has been teaching reading to students in Buffalo, New York, for six years as a volunteer with AARP Foundation Experience Corps.
Launched in 1995, the program pairs elementary school students with older adults with one goal: improve the kids’ reading skills before the end of third grade.
“If people don’t know how to read, that limits their ability to gain an education, to have an economically sustainable job and to retire with success and financial stability,” says Mioshi J. Moses, vice president of volunteer programs at AARP Foundation. Research shows that children who can’t read at grade level by fourth grade are four times more likely not to graduate from high school than their peers.
Experience Corps volunteers hold biweekly, one-on-one tutoring sessions in 18 communities across the U.S. The numbers are impressive. During the 2023–24 school year, 1,284 volunteers helped 3,659 kids become better readers before the end of third grade.
Student Benji Oliver reads with tutor Jack Walsh.
The volunteers describe rewarding experiences. “I have a little girl that I have worked with in the library, and the library has a cart of discarded books so that the kids can take them,” says Barbara Sundust, 77, from Pinal County, Arizona. “Almost every time we have reading together, before she leaves, she wants to go to that ‘discarded’ cart and take a book so that she can have a library at home.”
Stephanie Adams, 68, says, “I’m teaching now in Stanfield, Arizona, which is a farming town, and a lot of those kids are the only people in their family who speak English. So they’re learning to read in a new language. They’re learning to interpret for their parents. And they have me there as cheerleader.”
To learn more about Experience Corps volunteering opportunities, visit aarpfoundation.org/ec.
Looking to volunteer in your community? Here are other opportunities from AARP.
▶︎ State and community engagement: Volunteers can help AARP advocate for older adults in each of the 53 states and territories by influencing legislation to protect Social Security and Medicare, lower prescription drug costs, support caregivers and more. Find volunteer opportunities close to you at aarp.org/volunteernearme.
▶︎ Fraud prevention: Fraud prevention volunteers educate older adults about the latest scams and ways to avoid fraud and identity theft. For more info, visit aarp.org/fraudvolunteer.
▶︎ Driver safety: Volunteers teach AARP’s award-winning Smart Driver course to help older adults stay safe on the road and continue accessing key resources within their communities. To enroll as a volunteer, visit aarp.org/adsvolunteer.
▶︎ AARP Foundation Tax-Aide: This program is the largest free tax preparation service in the country. Volunteers are trained and certified to help older adults with low to moderate incomes complete and file their tax returns. To read more about the program, go to aarpfoundation.org/taxvolunteer.
▶︎ Senior Planet: Senior Planet is a community of older adults supporting each other as they learn to navigate our digital world. Volunteers help check in visitors to Senior Planet centers, cohost online classes, or share tech skills in one-on-one or group sessions. Visit seniorplanet.org/volunteer for more info.
▶︎ Create the Good: This online platform connects individuals with volunteer opportunities from AARP and other organizations. You can find it at createthegood.aarp.org.