Youth Literacy

Your Funding Support through United Way of Rockbridge

We care for families by supporting children's education. With your help, United Way of Rockbridge can support early childhood literacy programs to nurture a community of lifelong learning.

Blue Ridge CASA for Children

Blue Ridge CASA successfully advocates for children who have been victims of abuse and neglect. They do so by recruiting, selecting, training and supervising volunteers to advocate for children age’s birth to 18 years living in households under the poverty and/or ALICE threshold. During the 2019 calendar year, CASA advocated for the well-being of 11 children with 7 trained volunteer advocates.

Boxerwood Education Association

The mission of Boxerwood Education Association is to educate and inspire people of all ages to be environmentally responsible stewards of the Earth. Outdoor learning supports youth development and encourages children to create habits of mind and heart to become young citizens who make a difference for our world in conjunction with area schools. The staff-led immersive experiences in nature also expand life experiences, activate the senses, enrich vocabulary, awaken imagination, and provide a real-world context for science concepts encountered in the classroom. Effectiveness of the program is measured quantitatively and qualitatively with the three area district schools and teachers.

Rockbridge Area YMCA

The Rockbridge Area YMCA's mission is to put Christian principles into practice through programs that build a healthy spirit, mind and body for all. Over the last few years, this has been illustrated by the Y's After-School Care program at Central, Enderly Heights, and Waddell Elementary Schools, enrichment at Fairfield Elementary School, Fun Fridays at Natural Bridge Elementary, and Summer Camp. The YMCA is now serving students at every elementary school in the Rockbridge Area. Approximately 180 students each week receive services from the YMCA. The YMCA also stepped in to provide childcare for children of essential workers and first responders during the pandemic shutdown.

Rockbridge Regional Library

Rockbridge Regional Library cultivates opportunities for learning and fosters the fun in reading. The library created and distributed Pre-K Kits and “Get Ready for Kindergarten” kits to more than 200 five-year-old children across the service area. The kits included activities designed for parents and children to help children develop the skills needed to succeed in school. RRL was able to distribute more kits by connecting with area preschools, who gave the kits to rising kindergartners at May graduations.

The Library has also partnered with Rockbridge County and Lexington City schools since 1992 to provide a Youth Literacy program. School staff refer students to the program and match them with reading tutors/mentors who are trained through the Youth Literacy program. Volunteers commit to serving students for an academic year, helping them develop the functional reading skills that increase their chances of moving on to middle school, on to high school graduation, and on to better paying jobs that sustain households. In 2019, 64 reading tutors/mentors served 74 students.

Yellow Brick Road Early Learning Center

Yellow Brick Road (YBR) is a nonprofit offering educational programs for children ages six weeks to six years old. The organization offers scholarships to families who are otherwise unable to afford such an exceptional early childhood education. YBR was able to provide child care for 82 families; 31 from Lexington and 51 from Rockbridge County during the 2018-2019 school year with scholarship assistance to 37 families in need. Due to the lack of special needs pre-school classrooms in the area, YBR has also been able to offer childcare for 3 children in foster care and 9 children with special needs.