A NEW PARTNERSHIP FOR KIDSBRIDGE
We have been seeking an outside evaluator to analyze our student performance data for our K-Prep program, KidsBridge.  We are delighted to announce that the Regional Educational Laboratory (REL) at EDC (Education Design Center) has taken this on as a project!   KidsBridge was developed with the school district specifically to test a model that could close the preparation gap for incoming kindergarten students.  The goal was to give extra academic and social learning time to children with no pre-school experience, catch them up and send them off confident and more skilled.  Because REL was looking for an effective scalable model to address the same K performance gap problem, we thought this was a natural partnership and we're excited to team up and look at scaling KidsBridge to serve more students in more schools!   
CROSS-CULTURAL DISCUSSION
Last Saturday our staff and volunteers were joined by Ms. Eugenia Silva from The Providence Center who spoke about her experiences immigrating to the U.S. from Brazil; part of our discussion helped volunteers to think about ways they can aid the students they tutor feel more fully integrated into our society and how to foster good tutor-tutee relationships.  This was the first of several spring workshops we'll be hosting for our volunteers and individuals from the community -  we hope we'll see you at the next one!
VOLUNTEER SPOTLIGHT: 
MARGARET GARDNER
We recently sat down with Margaret Gardner to find out more about her experiences tutoring at MLK Elementary; she said she wished more people knew how diverse Providence schools are now and urges others to realize that "we can help [students], there's a role to play." Read the full interview here.


Refer a Friend!
We're still looking to recruit over 50 more community volunteers this year in order to help our school partners make sure that every student gets the help they need - and we need your help to do it. If you have any friends, family members, or co-workers who might have extra time during the week to volunteer we'd love to know!


LEGOS Wanted!

High-schoolers in our Tech Center need your Legos for an engineering project they'll be starting in April. You can drop off your donation at our office, but we can also pick-up from your home at your request AND Coastway Community Banks will be collecting for us as well! Find the closest Coastway to you and see your Legos put to good use!
TECH CENTER
Current Workshops
This semester our students are taking part in eight unique workshops, the most we've hosted in recent history!
  • Culinary Chemistry
  • Engineering Club
  • SPIRA : Girl's Engineering facilitated by Brown U students
  • Adulting : Life After High School
  • Lego Robotics
  • Video Game Design
  • Tech Art
  • English Language Learners
Check out our facebook to see pictures from our after-school workshops - new pictures added regularly!
COMING UP
MAY 5, 2016
Celebrate! Another 
Year  of Success
Our Annual Recognition Event will be a great celebration this year! Mark it on your calendar now and email [email protected] to learn more about purchasing your tickets!
CONSIDER GIVING WHAT YOU CAN
Any amount you can give makes a difference to our organization and the students we serve; even $5 helps to support our programs!
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Inspiring Minds, formerly known as VIPS, is a 52-year-old, award-winning non-profit that provides educational and social support to nearly 1,900 Providence public school students with the help of 1,000 community volunteers from throughout the state.
 
763 Westminster St.  Providence, RI 02903

401-274-3240