Twenty years ago, the National Center for Family Literacy (NCFL) organization and Toyota joined together to help families in need of education. Today, over one million families have been helped from 256 family literacy locations in fifty cities and thirty states across the nation, with Toyota’s generous investment in these literacy programs. The partnership between Toyota and NCFL was established in 1991, when the main goal of the organization was to improve preschool education. As the organization grew, it began helping other populations like immigrant and Hispanic families.

Research has proved that literacy programs can be even more successful when parents and children attend together. According to the National Institute of Health, a mother’s reading skill most determines her child’s future success in academics-more than family income and neighborhood factors. When children’s parents are involved in helping them learn how to read, the children tend to score 10 points higher on standardized tests for reading. A research study done in Oakland, CA also showed that students who attended literacy programs with their families scored 19% higher on standardized testing than students who attended the programs alone.

Toyota has contributed over $36 million to establishing these literacy programs all over the nation. In addition to its large investment in these programs, Toyota has also supported NCFL in other ways such as being involved in the planning, advertising and management of the programs. Toyota has continued to make a commitment to support this organization year after year. According to President and founder of NCFL, Sharon Darling, Toyota has helped family literacy program innovation continue. Darling expressed that it is very rare for a corporate partner to have such a long-term commitment and vision for a nonprofit organization such as NCFL.

There have been three main family literacy programs developed through Toyota’s partnership: TFLP, TFS and TFFL. The Toyota Family Literacy Program (TFLP) is dedicated to dealing with the educational needs of Hispanic families, along with other immigrant families. This program is intended to improve the English and reading skills of adults and to make sure they are involved in the education of their children. Toyota Families in Schools (TFS) is a program that aims to improve the literacy skills of at-risk children ages 5 to 12 with family literacy services in elementary schools. Toyota Families for Learning (TFFL) supports local programs that improve the education of preschool children in disadvantaged communities.

For the last 20 years, Toyota has played a tremendous role in the organization and implementation of these family programs. The literacy programs of the partnership influenced the Elementary and Secondary Education Act and the federal welfare reform policy, and have also been recognized by four U.S. Department of Education secretaries. With Toyota’s long-term commitment to its partnership with NCFL, the programs will continue to grow and help with the education of families all over the country.

Author Bio: Allen Smythe works as a freelance writer and marketer for companies like Germain Toyota of Columbus, a car dealer selling new Toyota cars in Columbus, Ohio. They are located at germaintoyota.net . When he is off the clock, Allen writes about and stays up-to-date on the latest marketing innovations, and follows the latest news about the automotive industry and cars.

Category: Automotive
Keywords: Toyota, NCFL, National Center for Family Literacy, Philanthropy