Cardinal Elementary School is filled with children who love to hear a story. Reading to them promotes their English language skills and love of reading.  We welcome new volunteers to read to K-2 classes for about 20 minutes once a week or every other week beginning in the Fall. Also, some volunteers work with small groups of 2nd graders who need more support.  In order to volunteer, you must do a one-hour orientation sponsored by Communities In Schools during which you will agree to a criminal background check. There are multiple orientation sessions available throughout the year - primarily in summer, early fall, and early spring.

Located on Richmond’s Southside, the student population at Cardinal Elementary School is mostly African American and Latinx American, with the fastest-growing Latinx population of any school in Richmond; more than 90 percent of the students are living at or below poverty level.

Everyone engaging with Cardinal Elementary is a member of our “Cardinal Team.” During our meetings, we reflect on what we are doing; deepen our understanding of cultural differences; explore issues of marginalization and privilege; and live the deeper truth that EVERY child is OUR child. We coordinate our activities and contributions through the Communities In Schools (CIS) site coordinator assigned to the school by CIS.

As the “Cardinal Team” we contribute to the school in the following ways:

• Backpack Snacks with food provided by Feed More for families who are not able to provide adequate food on the weekends when the children are not having breakfast and lunch at school,
• Weekly visits of 20 -30 minutes to read to entire classes (from kindergarten through 5th grade) or to work with individual students (from second to fifth grade) to improve their reading fluency and confidence.
• Supporting the school media specialists / librarians by working in the library while they are teaching classes.
• Providing breakfast for teachers and staff during Teacher Appreciation week and supporting other special days throughout the school year.

If you are interested in volunteering, please contact Debbie Bartle at dkpbartle@gmail.com.