News & Events
Our News Is Your News
Looking for the latest information about things that are happening at the Community Foundation? You’re in the right place. Check out our latest news or sign up to attend an event.
Upcoming Events
Aug
21
August 2111:30 am – 01:00 pm
United Way Of Berks County’s Ready.set.read! Initiative
Children learn to read through the end of third grade; when they enter fourth grade students read to learn. This is why United Way of Berks County’s Ready.Set.READ! initiative focuses on kindergarten readiness and reading proficiency by the end of third grade. As part of its Ready.Set.READ! efforts, United Way partners with Reading School District to deliver a phonetics-based curriculum called Read Alliance in nine elementary schools. The dual impact program, based on a New York Read Alliance model, recruits and trains high school students to serve as tutors for first graders. Teens gain valuable leadership and work skills thought this paid work experience; elementary students gain measurable reading progress. The results have been significant: • 462 second grade students have completed the program. • 76% of them made at least a one-year improvement in their reading skills; and • 323 high school teens gained paid employment work experience. With the success in Reading School District, United Way is now expanding the READ program, creating a greater impact for area teens and young students. Join us on August 21st at 11:30 to learn more about this work. Please register to receive a Zoom link. The recording of the session will be sent to all who register.
via Zoom
Jul
24
July 2411:30 am – 01:00 pm
Community Forum Program | Reading’s Sustainability Strategy
The City of Reading envisions a community that is clean, healthy and prosperous, a place where all people can live, learn, work and play. The city’s Sustainability plan is built on six pillars: clean energy, mobility, reducing waste, clean reliable water, supporting public health and fostering community development. This effort has fostered a more walkable city and enhanced greenways and public spaces. It supported the installation of a number of electric vehicle stations. Most recently, the Sustainability division is working on an $18M project to install energy saving LED lighting at operational and public facilities around the city, eliminating heating oil and natural gas for heating at five facilities by switching to high-efficiency heat pumps, and installing several solar canopies on city buildings to provide solar energy. Reading is also working with Green Building Alliance (GBA), an organization based in Pittsburgh, that assists property owners and developers to assess their buildings as they plan to develop or rehabilitate their facilities, making them more energy efficient and environmentally friendly. The City of Reading and GBA have partnered to kick off the Resilient Reading project, with support from the Met-Ed Sustainable Energy Fund of Berks County Community Foundation and Penelec Sustainable Energy Fund of Community Foundation for the Alleghenies. Resilient Reading will offer toolkits, educational roundtables, and technical assistance from GBA to area professionals in commercial and community property development, as well as members of neighborhood development groups. Join us to learn about this work.
via Zoom
Jun
5
June 509:00 am – 10:30 am
Community Forum Program | Spotlight Pa
Spotlight PA is non-partisan source of investigative journalism and a collaborative resource for newsrooms across the Commonwealth. It is journalism that gets results. At a time when news sources are disappearing or shrinking, Spotlight PA offers a way to get the important news that you need. Spotlight PA launched their first regional bureau in State College, providing important news about the North Central region of the state. They are now launching a regional office in Berks County which will focus on important issues and concerns in our region. Join us for this important in-person Community Forum and learn more from Chris Baxter, CEO and President of Spotlight PA, and Lisa Scheid, Berks County Managing Editor. Light refreshments will be provided. Registration begins at 8:30 a.m.; the program will begin at 9:00 a.m.
John R. Post Center at Reading College Towne
401 Penn Street, Reading PA 19601
All News
