An interview with Pastor Herman Greene, the founder of Lit Camp in North Portland, Oregon.

Pastor Greene has been an activist and community organizer in some of Portland's most diverse neighborhoods for three decades. As a former educator, faith leader and civil rights advocate, Herman (alongside his family and church abundantlifepdx.com) have managed numerous programs around hunger, access, sports, mentoring and education.

Several years ago, Pastor Greene was exposed to the unique and transformative impact of literacy among underserved youth. With the assistance of a network of literacy friends, he and his community launched Lit Camp and has just completed their first cohort of young students, mentored by high school students from within the community and shepherded by church members and leaders from the Triple Threat mentoring program (https://www.triplethreatmentoring.com).

Pastor's commitment led him to run and be elected to the Portland Public School Board so he could fight for the futures of all students in North Portland, while simultaneously building parallel literacy programs during school breaks to support academic excellence.

Hear about the stunning procession of events that led the Librarian of Congress, Dr. Carla Hayden, to host a showing of the heart-breaking illiteracy documentary, SENTENCED, before many of the country’s most influential political, business and religious leaders in the Coolidge Auditorium at the Library of Congress.  David Austin, Board Director of the Children’s Literacy Project, shares the whole story of how this historic Capitol premier came about.  He also explains the event’s significance and the larger role the LOC is playing not only in showing this culture-altering film, but also as an education leader more broadly. Learn about the 11th of September, 2024…

Please join this heartfelt discussion with Doug Kempton.  Doug is the Pastor of Grace Community Church in Detroit, Michigan.  This is a ‘nuts and bolts’ conversation about the structures and systems to launch, build and sustain a literacy outreach program in any church. Grace Community Church is an enthusiastic and successful Literacy Church.  Doug has been serving his congregation and the children of Detroit for decades.  He is also the founder of SOAR Detroit (soardetroit.com), an organization that provides tutoring to help kids flourish.  He is also the pastor of a “Literacy Church.” Tony and Doug explore their shared passion behind…

Jessica Bowersox became the Executive Director of SMART Reading in July 2022. She has been with the organization since 2010, as the Communications Director and later the Deputy Director. As a member of the organization’s executive leadership team for more than a decade, she has played an integral role in setting strategic vision for SMART and working with staff and board leadership to fulfill that vision.

Fall 2024 will mark the release of the new documentary on literacy called:  SENTENCED.  SENTENCED is an immersive and vulnerable exploration of the epidemic of childhood illiteracy through a series of braided character driven stories. Executive produced and narrated by 4x NBA basketball champion Stephen Curry, this film contributes to a movement that is designed to launch 1,000,000 volunteers into early childhood literacy.  Filmed from the point of view of ethnically diverse adults and children who have never learned to read, SENTENCED is a forceful yet tender tale of how literacy can free children from the cycles of generational poverty. Connor Martin lives in Oregon…

Enjoy this discussion about childhood illiteracy from a panel of experts from New York City.  This conversation includes:   Josiah Haken, the CEO of City Relief;  Richard Rivera of I Have a Dream Foundation;  Michael Coppotelli, of the Archdiocese of NYC;  Mary Cantwell of Enriched NYC;  Tony Kriz, Executive Producer of SENTENCED Andy Peterson of Doxology and a producer on SENTENCED documentary. This conversation was only possible because of the generous invitation of the Justice Film Festival (justicefilmfest.com) to screen an early version of our new documentary, SENTENCED (in theaters, Fall 2024).  The film was very well received and we believe you will be inspired by this spirited conversation…

Doug has been married to Meg for 37 years. Father of four adventurous children and four (soon to be five) irresistible grandchildren. Founded Soar Detroit in 1998 serving Detroit children through sports and one on one prescription based literacy tutoring. Doug also serves as lead pastor at Grace Community church, a vibrant diverse church in the city of Detroit.

Soar Detroit provides literacy tutoring and sports to foster life-changing relationships and help kids flourish. Their long-term vision is to turn Detroit’s literacy rate upside down, promote a healthy community in the city, and see kids come to know Jesus.

Stephanie Korteweg is the founder and former director of STARS Book clubs in Waco, TX.  Today she is on the local school board and gives her extra time to supporting national literacy movements.

Her work has been transformational in recruiting volunteers from faith communities and beyond.  Her work in impoverished schools has been incredible: schools that ranked at the bottom in literacy became district literacy leaders.

This episode enjoys the wisdom of Ron Fairchild, a well known national leader in literacy. In this wide ranging conversation, Ron shares topics as diverse as the relationship between "the zip code lottery" and literacy, the role a boxing program can have and the need for community wide solutions.

Ron Fairchild is the founder of the Smarter Learning Group. Prior to starting the firm, Ron served as CEO of the National Summer Learning Association. The Association's work built on over 15 years of experience and success as the National Center for Summer Learning at Johns Hopkins University, where Fairchild was executive director.

He is also Senior Consultant with the Campaign for Grade Level Reading. He is widely recognized as a national authority on how to expand learning opportunities for young people. His frequent appearances in the media include segments on NPR, CNN, C-SPAN, NBC Nightly News, and the CBS Early Show.

Today, TKR talks with Karen Vogelsang, the Executive Director of a formidable literacy organization outside of Memphis in Shelby County. Her enthusiasm for children is only outdone by her keen mind for navigating and succeeding in recruiting an army of reading mentors.

Karen is the Executive Director of ARISE2Read. Karen taught elementary school. She holds a Masters in Elementary Education and earned National Board Certification. Karen is the 2015 Tennessee Teacher of the Year. She received fellowships at Harvard’s Project Zero, Gates Foundation, Teach Plus, and Hope Street Group.