Santa Barbara Public Library offers volunteer tutor training for reading program

SANTA BARBARA, Calif.– The Santa Barbara Public Library announced it will host a three-session tutor training this month into May to increase volunteer tutors and expand the amount of tutors available to assist struggling students.

Tutoring Volunteers must complete an eight hour training that employs multisensory learning, phonics based instruction, and structured lessons.

The library says "volunteers will learn postgraduate-level reading intervention skills to provide targeted strategies to students in a way that traditional tutoring programs do not address".

Once completed volunteers are matched with students to catch up on reading skills as more than half of local students are not reading at grade level, according to the library.

The training is offered over the course of the three trainings sessions on Apr. 29, May 6, and May 13 at the Central Library.

All volunteers must be at least 16 years of age with those over 18 required to complete a background check. Those still in high school can earn services hours for both tutor training and weekly tutoring.

To register to attend the training to become a volunteer tutor visit the Library’s website here.

Learn more about how to become a tutor by emailing Library staff at OGreaders@santabarbaraca.gov.