Room to Read
John Wood | MySpace Video
Room to Read partners with local communities throughout the developing world to provide quality educational opportunities by establishing libraries, creating local language children's literature, constructing schools, and providing education to girls. We seek to intervene early in the lives of children in the belief that education empowers people to improve socioeconomic conditions for their families, communities, countries and future generations. Through the opportunities that only education can provide, we strive to break the cycle of poverty, one child at a time.
Brief History
John Wood, founder and executive chairman, launched Room to Read after a trek through Nepal where he visited several local schools. He was amazed by the warmth and enthusiasm of the students and teachers, but also saddened by the shocking lack of resources. Driven to help, John quit his senior executive position with Microsoft and built a global team to work with rural villages to build sustainable solutions to their educational challenges.
In founding Room to Read, John wove proven corporate business practices with his inspiring vision to provide educational access and opportunity to 10 million children in the developing world. His novel approach to non-profit management calls for:
- Scalable, measured, sustainable results
- Low-overhead, allowing maximum investment in educational infrastructure
- Challenge grants fostering community ownership and sustainability
- Strong local staff and partnerships creating culturally relevant programs
In 2000, Room to Read began working with rural communities in Nepal to build schools and establish libraries. The organization's geographic reach expanded rapidly as significant needs and opportunities were identified in Vietnam (2001), Cambodia (2002) and India (2003). The Asian Tsunami in 2004 provided a catalyst for entry into Sri Lanka followed shortly by Laos. We expanded to our second continent by launching Room to Read in South Africa in 2006, and then Zambia in 2007. In 2008, we began operations in Bangladesh.
http://www.roomtoread.org/
