Dubuque’s Campaign for Grade-Level Reading is one of only 24 plans honored in Washington, DC, for the Together for Tomorrow Challenge

Dubuque’s Campaign for Grade-Level Reading, facilitated by the Community Foundation of Greater Dubuque, was named a Together for Tomorrow Challenge Winner today at a special event in Washington, DC. Hosted by the U.S. Department of Education along with the Corporation for National and Community Service and the White House Office of Faith-based and Neighborhood Partnerships, the challenge is aimed at advancing community partnerships and citizen service that will support school improvement.

Dubuque’s Third-Grade Reading Plan was one of only 24 initiatives from across the country recognized at the invitation-only event for engaging broad partnerships and National Service initiatives in support of education at a community level.

Eric Dregne, Vice President of Programs for the Community Foundation of Greater Dubuque and Stan Rheingans, Superintendent of the Dubuque Community School District, represented Dubuque at the event.

Dubuque’s National Service Partnership, a coalition of organizations that lead AmeriCorps, VISTA’s and other national service programs in the community, responded to the challenge made by U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan during his visit to Dubuque last spring.

Judging for the challenge was based on six tenets: celebrating and inspiring engagement, measuring and sustaining impact, service activities and community resources, school and student needs, strengthening capacity, and focusing on the lowest-performing schools.

Through this program, the Campaign for Grade-Level Reading will gain access to the Together for Tomorrow online learning network and gain national recognition as one of America’s best existing and emerging school-community partnerships working to raise student achievement in lower-performing schools.

For more information, contact the DCSD School and Community Relations Office at (563)552-3020

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