As the new school year approaches, a local literacy program is undergoing a change in leadership.
Starting in July, Gretchen Tregoning will become the new director of Book Buddies, a volunteer-based tutoring program for second and third graders in the Bartholomew Consolidated School Corp.
Tregoning has been with the Book Buddies program for almost 10 years.
“I was looking for a way to volunteer at a school, because I had been a teacher,” she said. “And my kids were at Southside. And so I heard about the Book Buddies program and started volunteering there.”
She served as a volunteer for two years and then was the site supervisor at Schmitt Elementary School for seven years. Outgoing director Debbie Lindauer, who is retiring, said that Tregoning has been a “key part in continuing development and growth of Book Buddies.”
“She has great ideas,” Lindauer said. “She’s very passionate about literacy, very knowledgeable about it.”
The two women said the director’s duties include overseeing the volunteer programs in 11 elementary schools, recruiting and training volunteers, providing “staff support” for site supervisors and working with community partners.
Lindauer, who has been Book Buddies director for 10 years, said she expects the transition to go smoothly. She does not have any “immediate plans,” but expects to spend more time with family and hopes to do some volunteer work.
She volunteered at Riley Hospital pre-COVID and has also done contractual work for the catholic church through the Archdiocese of Indianapolis in the past, said Lindauer. Tregoning also expressed hope that she might return to Book Buddies as a volunteer.
Both women expressed excitement about the future of the program.
“I think it’s the most wonderful program that we have, and it’s so well developed,” Tregoning said.
“I’m excited about looking forward to things hopefully returning to normal and our volunteers getting back in the schools and working with our kids.”
She said that while the school corporation has not yet announced what COVID-19 restrictions will be in place this school year, Book Buddies is hoping that volunteers might be able to re-enter schools.
Lindauer said in a previous interview that on a normal year, the program sends 300 volunteers each week into schools to read with their student “buddies.”
However, even before the school corporation moved back to eLearning mid-year, Book Buddies volunteers were unable to meet with students in person, as BCSC protocols dictated that nonessential visitors were not allowed in school buildings.
During the periods when elementary schools were in-person, staff were able to meet face-to-face with students and host a modified version of the program, Lindauer said.
Currently, the program is working on getting volunteers re-enrolled and “moving forward with a plan” for their return, Tregoning said.
As one director steps down and another prepares to step up, there is also more somber news, Lindauer said. Michal Ann “Mickey” Land, the program’s first director, died on June 18, 2021 at the age of 77.
Land devoted 39 years to elementary education. She was exceptionally proud of being an integral part of the development and implementation of the BCSC Book Buddies program, serving as coordinator at its inception.
Book Buddies shared in a short social media tribute that after retiring from full-time education, Land was also a “long time volunteer.”
“She made a big and lasting impact on children,” the post noted, “and the volunteers who make a difference.”
The possibility of “helping even one child become a real reader” makes Book Buddies worthwhile, said Land in 2006, as she prepared for the program’s launch.
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Book Buddies is a volunteer-based tutoring program that helps second and third graders improve their reading skills. It serves students in the 11 BCSC elementary schools.
There are also Book Buddies site staff members. Each school has a site coordinator who prepares materials, hosts the program and communicates with volunteers.
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