Partners for Education at Berea College has been selected by the Corporation for National and Community Service (CNCS) as a recipient of an AmeriCorps grant. Partners for Education’s program, PartnerCorps: STEM, will increase student competency in the science, technology, engineering and mathematics, or “STEM” fields. Partners for Education will place 20 AmeriCorps members in three Madison County high schools: Berea Independent, Madison Central, and Madison Southern. PartnerCorps: STEM members will mentor high school students, provide in-school and out-of-school tutoring to students taking algebra courses while connecting the math to STEM careers.
“We appreciate the investment in our work by CNCS,” said Dreama Gentry, executive director for Partners for Education. “Over three years, the total investment is valued at $1.2 million.” PartnerCorps: STEM will recruit 20 individuals committed to service and place them in the three local high schools.
Madison County Schools’ Chief Academic Officer David Gilliam is also pleased with the news. “It is exciting to partner with Berea College and AmeriCorps,” he said. “This grant will provide hands and feet in the schools working directly with students to build math skills. It fits directly with our district initiative to improve math achievement.”
Gentry points out that this opportunity is a continuation of work Partners for Education is already doing. “PartnerCorps: STEM is an outgrowth of our PartnerCorps School Turnaround work in Knox and Leslie counties. We have seen the impact of that work on student attendance, behavior and course performance and we are very excited to expand this work into Madison County.”
