We're an Official CDF Freedom Schools® Partner Organization
The Children's Defense Fund (CDF) Freedom Schools® program is the only six-week summer literacy and cultural enrichment program with a key focus on social justice designed with a model that empowers scholars to excel and believe in their ability to make a difference in themselves, their families, communities, country, and the world with hope, education, and action.
Rooted in the Mississippi Freedom Summer project of 1964, the CDF Freedom Schools program is designed to serve children and youth in grades K–12 in communities where quality academic enrichment programming is limited, too expensive, or non-existent.
This program is offered at no cost to the families and communities served. The CDF Freedom Schools program enhances children’s motivation to read and makes them feel good about learning. At the same time, the program connects families to the right resources in their communities. CDF Freedom Schools scholars engage in CDF’s research-based, multicultural Integrated Reading Curriculum (IRC) that supports them and their families through five essential components:
- High-quality academic enrichment
- Parent and family development
- Civic engagement and social action
- Intergenerational servant leadership development
- Nutrition, health, and mental health
The lessons in the IRC consist of social action skill development activities and include opportunities for civic engagement, conflict resolution, and self and community empowerment.
The IRC books feature heroes, heroines, and settings that reflect the scholars’ cultural images and history.
Representation matters and through our belief in an intergenerational leadership model, the CDF Freedom Schools program is staffed primarily by college students and recent college graduates, with a 10:1 child-to-adult ratio. As a result, many children and youth make significant gains in reading achievement and don’t experience any summer learning loss.
We sponsor and support a CDF Freedom Schools® program in these communities:
Huntsville, Madison County, AL
Union Springs, Bullock County, AL
Interested in getting a CDF Freedom Schools program started in your community? Get the conversation going and send an email to hello@crshsv.org.
If you would prefer to mail a check (made payable to Children Read Succeed), or purchase supplies on our behalf, please send it to:
Children Read Succeed
P.O. Box 5454
Huntsville, AL 35814
Children Read Succeed (CRS) is a Section 501(c) (3) public charitable organization, Tax ID: 85-3230252. All donations are deemed tax-deductible absent any limitations on deductibility applicable to a particular taxpayer. No goods or services were provided in exchange for your contribution.