Toya Algarin sees grandmothers as a way through Philadelphia’s literacy crisis
Read by 4th recently profiled our founder Toya Algarin, below is an excerpt from that piece.
Walk into one of Toya “Gigi” Algarin's sessions, and you'll hear the quiet click of crochet hooks on desks as stories are being read aloud.
Toya is the founder of Grandmas4Literacy, an organization rewriting who gets to lead early literacy work in Philadelphia. Her idea is simple and radical: the people best positioned to teach children to read may already be in their homes. We sat down with Toya to talk about the power of a grandmother’s love, Philly’s literacy crisis, and why she believes liberation has always started with a book.
Q: Why is literacy a cause you dedicate your life to?
When I tell this story, I automatically go back to 1929, that's when my mother was born.
My mother never graduated from high school, but she taught me that education was the most important thing in the world. And she was a beast. She became a judge of elections without a diploma. That was just who she was.I had the value of education instilled in me early. I sent my kids to some of the best schools I could find. They graduated lacking some of the basics.
That's what gets me. Because my mother was raising my children while I was building my career, and she was amazing. My kids are great human beings because of her. But imagine if she'd had the resources to teach them how to read. Things might have been different. So now I want to supply other grandmothers with those resources. Because grandmothers change lives.
Don’t worry about sounding professional. Sound like you. There are over 1.5 billion websites out there, but your story is what’s going to separate this one from the rest. If you read the words back and don’t hear your own voice in your head, that’s a good sign you still have more work to do.
Be clear, be confident and don’t overthink it. The beauty of your story is that it’s going to continue to evolve and your site can evolve with it. Your goal should be to make it feel right for right now. Later will take care of itself. It always does. Be clear, be confident and don’t overthink it. The beauty of your story is that it’s going to continue to evolve and your site can evolve with it. Your goal should be to make it feel right for right now. Later will take care of itself. It always does.