Freedom School volunteers prepare for summer program

CHARLOTTE, NC (WBTV) - Summer has arrived for thousands of local students. While your children may be glad to be out of school, its not always the best for their mind.

Summer learning loss is often the biggest reason behind the achievement gap between low and high income children.

However, Charlotte is lucky enough to have a literacy program that aims to shrink that gap.

"They're going to get off the bus really tired, but really excited about the difference they can make in young peoples' lives", said Mary Nell McPherson with Freedom School.

200 College students returned to Charlotte Sunday after spending a week in Tennessee, learning how to motivate younger students this summer at Freedom School.

McPherson says "Freedom School makes such a difference because children re-enter the classroom in the fall excited about reading, better readers, and having not spent the summer with their brains turned to mashed potatoes while they're hanging out in the neighborhood or on the sofa for the summer."

This year, Freedom School will serve 1600 Charlotte-Mecklenburg students at 25 sites, helping with reading skills and a lot more.

Kofi Stitt is a college student who volunteersto help withFreedomSchool."They see college age kids that look like them, that sound like them doing something with their lives and making something better for themselves, and they believe that they can do it also."

Collins Cornwell is also a college student in the program."It's very important, especially for the black males, because a lot of young black males don't have positive black male role models, and Freedom School has so many intelligent, educated black males who want to give back to the kids."

Freedom School beginsMonday, June 18that all 25 Charlotte-Mecklenburg sites.

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Freedom School volunteers prepare for summer program