In the spirit of Martin Luther King, help us build the civic, moral and spiritual foundation for a better world. Two out of three DC students are reading below grade level. Many more have other academic and non-academic needs. If only 5-10% of adults would get involved, we could transform the future for these kids and create a more vibrant, equitable, and sustainable civic culture.
We will gather at the Josephine Butler Parks Center at 10 a.m. for breakfast, conversation, orientation and “civic canvassing” practice. Then break up into teams to canvass at locations around the city to talk to people about getting involved.
The Civil Rights Movement of the 1950s and ‘60s transformed our civic culture by confronting Americans with the wide gap between their deeper values and their actual behavior. We are trying to do the same.
DCTMI “civic canvassers” walk and talk with people at farmers markets, community events and spaces about the need for more people to get involved as tutors and mentors. We ask them if they can help for an hour or two a week to make a difference in the life of a child. If they say yes, we sign them up and then match them with one of our 40+ partner tutoring and mentoring organizations or schools. Equally important, we try to engage people in real conversation about their lives: What they are doing to make a better world and what are their personal thoughts about or barriers to getting more involved.
Our Martin Luther King Day Partners:
NCNW of Howard University - The Circle K Club and Alpha Phi Omega of George Washington University - Washington Parks &People
