Our Residents

SHA Executive Director William H. Abrashkin welcomes parents and friends to the Talk/Read/Succeed! Hasbro Summer Learning Program at Dorman Elementary School last summer.

Springfield Housing Authority and the Talk/Read/Succeed! program offer a hearty thanks to all those who generously contributed to the ‘Valley Gives’ day on Dec. 12, 2012.

In all, 11 donors gave a total $765 in contributions to T/R/S! to help support the program that unites two SHA developments and two city schools in a unified approach to boost early literacy.

SHA Executive Director William H. Abrashkin thanked all donors, saying the funds will help serve among the youngest residents and their families in their quest to excel academically and do well in life.

“Community awareness and involvement are key to the success of the wonderful T/R/S! program,” he said. “This, in addition to the much-needed funding, explains the importance of Valley Gives day to T/R/S!”

Dorman Elementary Teacher Ellen Brennan as a big smile for pupils in her summer learning class.

The first-ever Valley Gives event enabled donors from across Hampden, Hampshire and Franklin counties to give to specific non-profit agencies on 12-12-12 through the Razoo Foundation’s website, Razoo.com. In Springfield Housing Authority Inc. was one of 105 agencies to participate in the event, which is likely to be repeated this year.

Razoo donations to SHA Inc. totaled $621, with an additional $145 given directly to the fund after the Valley Gives Day of Giving.

All funds given to SHA Inc. will go to T/R/S!, an innovative early literacy program that unites two Springfield Housing Authority developments, John L. Sullivan and Robinson Gardens, with the two neighboring city elementary schools.

Robinson Gardens children line up for face painting at a T/R/S! back-to-school event.

Patterned after the acclaimed Harlem Children’s Zone in New York, the T/R/S! program was launched in 2010 with a grant from the W.K. Kellogg Foundation, guided by the Davis Foundation, marshaling a broad-based coalition to bring lasting and positive changes for SHA families and the Springfield community.

With limited funding and resources from across the city, T/R/S! has managed to show elevated reading and literacy skills among children and families who participate fully, particularly in the Hasbro Summer Learning Initiative, a five-week summer program run at both Boland and Dorman schools.

Abrashkin said service providers make the most of what is available.

“Our staff can really stretch a dollar. There are many activities that are important, but low-cost – a field trip for children, movie nights for families – these kinds of programs add a lot to the overall T/R/S! approach,” he said.

And T/R/S! reaches for a high goal.

“Many of our kids are caught in a cycle of disadvantage and need the holistic and sustained approach of T/R/S! to break out and open up opportunities. This is as important to society at large as it is to T/R/S! families. We want these children to grow up not as burdens, but as contributors,” Abrashkin said.

SHA plans to participate in this year’s Valley Gives.