Room to Read’s belief that education is the best alleviator of poverty has led to more than 11.6 million children worldwide benefiting from their educational programs, in just 17 years. Room to Read believes that world change starts with educated children – who all have a right to be educated.

As Room to Read’s founder, John Wood, put it: “No child should ever be told, ‘you were born in the wrong place at the wrong time and didn’t get educated.’ That whole idea just belongs in the dustbin of history.”

We caught up with one of Room to Read’s two Australian staff, Janelle Prescott, to find out more about the charity’s progress and how effective their business partnerships are here in Australia.

To set the scene, here are the sobering stats: more than 775 million people in our world cannot read or write and over 250 million children lack basic reading, writing and numeracy skills. This directly contributes to disadvantage around the world and can be changed.

On the flip side of these negative literacy stats is the good news from Room to Read: they plan to invest in nearly one million children each year and in the lives of at least 15 million children by 2020.

“We seek to transform the lives of millions of children in low income countries by focusing on improving literacy outcomes and gender equality in education,” says Janelle.

Along with education programs for children in low income countries, Room to Read also builds the capacity of teachers who work in their partner schools.

“We’re with the schools for at least three years so it allows us to build their personal capacity as teachers, their school infrastructure and the learning materials they are using over the long term,” explains Janelle.

Room to Read operates in 17 countries, including 14 program countries in Asia, Africa, the Middle East and the Caribbean, with their headquarters in San Francisco. Around 90 per cent of Room of Read’s 1,000 staff are locals working in program countries. In Australia, Room to Read is represented by two employees who focus on fundraising and raising awareness for the international charity.

In Australia

The tiny Australian office of two employees rely heavily on their army of volunteers – some of whom are so dedicated they volunteer full time hours. The Australian office also depends on the support of corporates, businesses and their employees, with partnerships and workplace giving contributing to more than half of the local arm’s annual income.

“We’ve been in Australia since 2009 when it was run by volunteers and we’re still building our following. People like our story – keeping girls in schools in low income countries – and our business support forms a very important part of our fundraising,” explains Janelle.

“Workplace giving forms part of these partnerships and it’s an opportunity to continually broaden our engagement with the community. It’s also a reliable avenue of fundraising that chugs along in the background, allowing us to direct funds where we need them most.”

Atlassian is one such company which has supported Room to Read over the long term, contributing millions predominately through their employee ‘Dollar a Day’ donation program – which is the cost of keeping a girl in school each day.

Hundreds of Atlassian staff in Australia (and 800 globally) donate a dollar a day ($365 a year) directly from their salary which equates to hundreds of thousands in contributions. It’s a simple way for employees to contribute to a charity which is making a huge impact, with the added bonus of creating engagement amongst staff who are a member of the growing Dollar a Day community. Atlassian also host and support Room to Read events and contribute in other practical ways.

Best in Class

Room to Read’s success stories are in the millions:

• 6 million children worldwide have been supported
• 18,696 partner schools have come on board
• 9 million children have benefited from literacy programs
• 9,232 teachers and librarians have been trained
• 18 million books have been distributed to children and schools

“We’re changing the world through improving access to education and it’s what is changing lives. We envision a world in which all children can have a quality education that enables them to reach their full potential and contribute to their own communities and the world,” says Janelle.

Staying in School

Sary is the only girl from her village in Cambodia to continue in secondary school. Determined to pursue her goal of graduating, 16-year-old Sary has been renting a room near Samrong High School in Siem Reap since she was in Grade 10.

She has three younger siblings and her parents are farmers who make a living from growing rice and potatoes in an area outside of Siem Reap.

Before Sary began renting a room, the commute to school was not only far but dangerous. From Grade 7-9, Sary had to ride her bicycle 16 kilometres each way to school.

“On the way home from school I sometimes had to stop at random houses and make an excuse asking for a drink of water, because there were strangers following me,” says Sary.

Instead of staying in school, many teenagers from Sary’s village work as waitresses or labourers in Thailand. Sary herself was pressured to drop out of school in Grade 9, when her parents asked her to begin working in a garment factory instead of continuing her education.

“I told my parents that I really didn’t want to drop out. I didn’t want to work at the factory. I wasn’t sure if I was strong enough to work for hours at the factory, and I didn’t think it would earn much either,” Sary recalls.

It was around this time that Sary was selected to join Room to Read’s Girls’ Education Program. As part of the program, Sary attended life skills classes and was connected to local female mentors who supported her education. Through these experiences, Sary could clearly see her future as an independent woman with a successful career.

Now, Sary says, “I want to continue learning and become a teacher in physics or chemistry.”

After attending parent workshops and several meetings with Sary’s social mobiliser through Room to Read, Sary’s parents have been convinced of the benefits of keeping her in school. They are now very supportive, even providing financial support for Sary to rent the room near her school. Now, Sary comes home every weekend to help her parents with their farming.

“My mother encourages me to become a teacher at the secondary school that was just opened in our village, after I graduate. There aren’t enough teachers there since none of the children from our village have finished high school, except me,” Sary says proudly.

If your company has Good2Give’s workplace giving program in place, you can donate to Room to Read while you work. If not, visit the charity’s website to support their terrific programs and initiatives.