North Carolina Education Corps Supported Tutors Contributing to NC Literacy Gains 

We’re thrilled to see the literacy gains among North Carolina K-3 students as reported by EdNC. 

Watch the video below to hear directly from our 2023-2024 partners about how NC Education Corps (NCEC) helped accelerate student gains in their schools through high-impact tutoring. 

Tutors Are Back in Action, Supporting K-5 Students across 26 School Districts this Year 

As Amy Rhyne noted about DPI’s literacy efforts, “We’re proud of the literacy gains we’ve achieved, but there’s more work ahead” with nearly 50% of students still beginning the school year below grade-level standards.

Our K-5 literacy and math tutors are empowering students across the state to become stronger, more confident learners. This year, NCEC is working with 26 school districts to match tutors with students starting the year below grade-level reading and math benchmarks. 

Learning from tutoring leaders nationwide 

As students make gains, we continue to learn and improve too. Our NCEC Executive Director, John-Paul Smith, has been selected for the Accelerate State Tutoring Fellowship— a pioneering national network dedicated to advancing and scaling high-dosage tutoring programs to improve academic outcomes for students across the country. 

I am honored to represent North Carolina in the Accelerate State Tutoring Fellowship. This recognition reflects our team’s commitment to supporting student success. I look forward to learning from fellow leaders who are equally dedicated to ensuring every child receives the support they need to thrive.

John-Paul Smith, Executive Director, NCEC 

This opportunity will allow NCEC to deepen its impact by collaborating with a network of peers equally committed to advancing effective tutoring strategies for students nationwide. 

Stay tuned as we share insights from our community of practice!

NCEC is Working with Accelerate and Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools to Enhance Tutor Impact Measurement 

NCEC was awarded a 2024 Accelerate Call to Effective Action Grant!

Accelerate is a national organization that supports models of tutoring and individualized instruction that demonstrate the potential to deliver cost-effective services on a large scale to improve student outcomes.  

We are honored to receive a Call to Effective Action grant, which we are using to support a research project between Accelerate, NCEC, and Winston-Salem Forsyth County Schools to better understand, through a randomized control trial, the impact tutors are having on student growth. 

Support Our Work So We Can Support More Schools and Students 

Since 2021, we’ve placed and supported over 1,200 corps members who have provided high-impact reading and math tutoring to more than 22,000 K-5 students. This impact is thanks to financial support from the North Carolina General Assembly, North Carolina Governor’s Office, and charitable donors. 

As Covid-era relief funds expire for schools, this is an especially critical time to invest in high-impact tutoring and other evidence-based practices for improving student outcomes. And if you don’t want to take it from us, take it from Steph and Ayesha Curry.

In the coming weeks, we’ll share new ways to sustain and expand this work. With your support, we will continue the mission to close opportunity gaps, strengthen schools, and invest in the success of our next generation. 

Thank you for helping us build a brighter future for students across the state!