Today we’d like to introduce you to Chrysta Naron.
Hi Chrysta, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I’m the founder and president of Read the Room. Basically, a theatre nerd that fell in love with early childhood education and equity in education.
I got into education almost by accident. One summer during college, I needed a job and a friend of mine suggested I come and work at a preschool with her. I fell so madly in love with teaching and education that it completely changed the trajectory of my professional life. The longer I taught, the more inequities I began seeing in the education system. And the more of those I began to witness or hear about from others, the more determined I became to use my skills and privilege to make a substantial change in public schools for young children.
After getting my Master’s of Ed from UT, I began researching, brainstorming, and developing what would become Read the Room. We formed as a nonprofit here in Austin just this past year. We use an approach that we call “Classroom Community Connection.” Read the Room serves Pre-K through 2nd-grade classrooms in low-income schools. We start by offering free professional development to educators in Culturally Sustaining Pedagogy, so students are represented authentically in the curriculum being taught. Then we offer free community events for families to attend. The events have fun hands-on activities for families to do together and that align with what students are learning in school. We aim to remove as many barriers to quality, comprehensive education as possible and to empower parents and teachers, thereby empower young children. We began actively working in schools this May. Next fall, we’ll start working with Austin ISD to start providing elementary schools with our services.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
Definitely not smooth. Funding for education is getting cut back more and more. Large corporations tend to give funds out to bigger names and want splashier results. We’re trying to restructure the entire way public school curriculum is done here in Texas, especially as it concerns BIPOC students. Government grants create hoop after hoop to jump through. And though everyone agrees funding is vital, it’s been hard for us to raise the money we need.
Luckily, we’ve been fortunate that so many people believe in Read the Room, they have been kind enough to offer services or materials as a donation. And in that way, Read the Room continues to be able to make real change happen.
As you know, we’re big fans of Read the Room. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about the brand?
Read the Room is dedicated to changing the way that the Texas education system works. We serve low-income Pre-K through 2nd-grade classrooms. We train teachers to rethink and redesign their approach to teaching. By putting the students’ community first, children engage with academics in new and stronger ways. Classroom engagement leads to higher grades and academic achievement. Our curriculum specialists familiarize themselves with the classrooms and communities they come in to assist. We have a hands-on approach that provides professional development, classroom evaluation, and constant support throughout the school year. We provide new pathways for classrooms to connect to the community and for the community to connect to the classroom through bi-monthly events, our Community Inclusion Program.
Through the Community Inclusion Program, Read the Room hosts bi-monthly community events at local community spaces. We provide food, activities, and support for students and families. These events are hosted by Read the Room team members from that specific community or a similar background. These events are designed to empower parents, excite children, and create connections between the classroom and the community.
Think of it as an in-person Mr. Rogers experience. Without the cardigan.
Who else deserves credit in your story?
So many people deserve credit in helping Read the Room. We have a fantastic board Johnathan Salinas (as our VP of Educational Outreach) and Kristina Modares (as our Treasurer). One of our founding board members, who no longer serves, but is still a wonderful supporter of ours, Lena Martinez-Wolfinger was also the person who first got me into early childhood education. AISD has been thrilled about working with us and we’ve gotten incredible support from other educators we know.
As a personal mentor, Stephanie Dua, the founder of Learn With Homer, sparked by showing me what it meant to try and make difference in education and literacy outside of the classroom. She has been unwavering in her dedication to education for nearly 20 years and has been a supporter of mine for 14.
And again, friends and colleagues have helped us in ways large and small, training us in how to create social media campaigns, mentoring us in how to write grants, sharing their experiences teaching and how they would want support.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.readtheroomeducation.org/
- Instagram: @readtheroom_ed
- Twitter: @readtheroom_ed
