For over ten years, the Board of Project L.O.V.E., through its Executive Director, has invested a great deal of time and resources in developing the size and scope of Project L.O.V.E. Several programs have been mounted, the principal one being the literacy program where senior volunteers read to elementary children in schools. While other programs such as B.O.A.S.T. (Bringing Older Adults and Students Together) have met with some success, it is really the L.O.V.E. (Let Older Volunteers Educate) program which has had the greatest success becoming active in most elementary schools on Prince Edward Island. The establishment of Project L.O.V.E. in schools is primarily the result of direct and consistent communication between the Executive Director and the individual schools.
A great deal of this communication happens in the fall when the school year gets underway and routines are being established. Principals are contacted first and take the lead. Responsibility for the program’s implementation is often delegated to a School Contact person. The Executive Director monitors changes in school personnel, new school district policies, as well as feedback from schools on issues around the operation of the program. Because of this extensive person-to-person communication, Project L.O.V.E. is able to meet individual school needs and fit into each school in a flexible and responsive way. The role of the Executive Director is essential for the continued success of Project L.O.V.E.. and an expanded position to full-time would help “grow the organization.”
Each school year requires a fall orientation meeting at the school level where new and returning volunteers meet with the classroom teachers with whom they will work. Goals of the program, procedures for how it will work in the particular school, plus reminders about confidentiality, security, attendance, and routines are reviewed with both teachers and volunteers. Our focus group discussions highlighted the importance of these orientation session, while pointing to the desire by both parties to have more opportunities to meet and follow up after the program has started. This would allow volunteers and teachers to share their successes and iron out any procedural issues that have arisen. It would also prove beneficial to have them share stories about the children, their reading, and what they are finding to be helpful.
The impact that Project L.O.V.E. has had has come principally through direct and consistent communication between the Executive Director of Project L.O.V.E.
The Board of Project L.O.V.E. needs to consider increasing the Executive Director position to full-time in order to sustain and “grow the organization.”