ChevronTexaco Contributes $600,000 to Support Bakersfield Early-Litera

BAKERSFIELD, Calif., Feb. 21 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- In an effort to improve literacy among children in Bakersfield, ChevronTexaco Corp. today announced it is contributing $600,000 to the Preschool Literacy Project -- Building Blocks to Reading Success, a program sponsored by the Bakersfield City School District (BCSD), California State University, Bakersfield (CSUB) and Houghton Mifflin.

"It's clear that positive early childhood experiences set the stage for lifelong success -- in the classroom and beyond," said ChevronTexaco San Joaquin Valley Business Unit Vice President Warner Williams. "We're proud to support programs like the Preschool Literacy Project that deliver sustained benefits to the Bakersfield community."

The sponsors created the Preschool Literacy Project to address the problem at the earliest stage of education -- pre-school. The impact within the district should be apparent within one to two years, as children enter kindergarten with significantly advanced literacy skills.

"This is an enormously important project for our region," said CSUB President Horace Mitchell. "By targeting children at an early age, we will be able to place them on the track to a lifetime of success."

As part of the project, CSUB faculty will offer training to BCSD preschool teachers. Literacy coaches will develop model literacy strategies, provide feedback to teachers and conduct ongoing assessments to customize instruction. Additionally, preschool educators and parents will learn techniques on early- literacy instruction, assessment methods and how to use in-home resources as teaching tools.

"This project lays the foundation for essential, emergent literacy skills," said Dr. Jean Fuller, BCSD superintendent. "Research indicates that children need certain pre literacy skills -- from recognizing the front and back of a book to recognizing letters of the alphabet. This project will tap into the existing, strong preschool programs and help children be ready to learn how to read on their first day of kindergarten."

"Through these partnerships we hope to increase the number of students who attend college. Not only will that improve the quality of their lives, but also it will improve the quality of our local economy," Mitchell said.

About ChevronTexaco

ChevronTexaco Corp. is one of the world's leading energy companies. With more than 47,000 employees, ChevronTexaco conducts business in approximately 180 countries around the world, producing and transporting crude oil and natural gas, and marketing and distributing fuels and other energy products. ChevronTexaco is based in San Ramon, Calif. More information on ChevronTexaco is available at http://www.chevrontexaco.com/