Each year the Independent Sector, a leadership network for charities, foundations and corporate giving programs publishes an annual valuation for volunteer hours, providing one way to measure the impact that millions of volunteers make with one hour of service. For 2010, the value of a volunteer hour was set at $21.36.

Last school year, APIE filled 883 Classroom Coaching opportunities on a weekly basis. In addition, 750 mentors met with students over their lunch hour to read, play games, or just provide a friendly adult ear. Last year APIE volunteers delivered $34,880 worth of service to Austin students each week. Over an average of twenty-one weeks of programming, that totals just over $700K of additional resource in the school year!

Yet this figure represents only a fraction of the value delivered by these dedicated volunteers each week. Getting students engaged in math and reading, encouraging the development of critical thinking, problem-solving and team skills, building confidence in students’ academic abilities; this is what we invest in. And the outcomes are priceless.

Learn more about how you can make a difference with one hour a week. Go to https://austinpartners.org/volunteer to learn more about our Classroom Coaching and Mentoring opportunities.

Pat Abrams, Executive Director