Donation will support the ASD ‘Comprehensive Literacy Initiative.’

Submitted by Rennie Polk, American School for the Deaf

ASD student taking advantage of reading materials in the library. Submitted photo.

The TD Charitable Foundation, the charitable giving arm of TD Bank, America’s Most Convenient Bank, has awarded The American School for the Deaf (ASD) $7,500 in support of ASD’s Comprehensive Literacy Initiative, a program designed to provide students in pre-kindergarten through twelfth grade the necessary support services to address their complex literacy challenges and unique learning styles.

The Initiative includes a Reading Specialist, purchase of reading materials and the use of the Strategic and Interactive Writing Approach (SIWI) which is recognized, based on over 20 years of research, and is recognized as an effective writing strategy to employ with deaf students.

Executive Director Jeffrey S. Bravin said “We are most appreciative to the TD Charitable Foundation for giving us the opportunity to explore ways to teach deaf and hard of hearing children language.”

The TD Charitable Foundation carries a legacy of supporting not-for-profit institutions and their important work throughout the region. Since its inception in 2002, the foundation has contributed over $122 million in grant funding to not-for-profit organizations in the communities where we work, live and do business.