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D&C story:
An innovative reading program at one city elementary school has boosted test scores in recent years, but its future in the City School District is in question.
Reading scores at School 52 have jumped in recent years, a surge administrators at the school attribute to a confluence of factors including a committed volunteer base and a more strategic approach to using it.

But while the volunteering program will expand to two more elementary schools next school year, the consultant who helped draft a new strategy for improving school-wide performance is without a contract.

In the 2008-09 school year, students in grades 2 through 6 went from 49 percent reading at or above grade level to 66 percent.

This year, though results aren't final, that number is approaching 80 percent.

"This whole approach is a powerful alternative to charter schools," said Michael Perlson, president of Rochester-based Human Capital Management and an organizational psychologist who has been working with the school's leadership team. Working on a grant from Klein Steel, Perlson developed an approach to utilizing the school's many volunteers. Klein Steel and School 52 are partners through the district's PENCIL program, which matches schools with businesses.

By focusing volunteer efforts on students who are close to succeeding — Students of Opportunity — teachers have more time to work with students at the high and low ends of the spectrum — students who can most benefit from work with trained teachers.

"These are the students who slip through the cracks," said School 52 Principal Denise Rainey.

Another benefit is that volunteers feel like they are making a real difference.

"We don't want to frustrate a volunteer with a student they don't see making any measurable progress," Rainey said. And for the students classified by the school's teachers, the one-on-one time with a volunteer can make the difference between meeting state reading standards and falling behind.

"The partnership between School 52 and Klein Steel is a model for bringing together ideas, talent and resources to enhance student learning," said Nydia Padilla-Rodriguez, director of the Rochester School District's PENCIL program. "The school has seen a sharp increase in student literacy rates and it continues to make progress. The partnership has made possible a robust enrichment program that supports student success."

But next school year, though volunteer coordinator Bruce Pollock will expand his recruitment and retention program to schools 20 and 22, Perlson's grant from Klein Steel will run out.

He said he would like to expand to other schools, but School 52, with its plan in place, will continue down the same path.

"Once you get a working model, it creates its own momentum," Perlson said.

NRAMOS@DemocratandChronicle.com