OCT's Ticket to Read Program for Students at Low-Income Schools

The CEO of Amare, LLC in Oregon, Dominic O’Dierno and his team advise clients in the areas of funding, early-stage business, investor relations, and strategic plan development. Dedicated to helping his community beyond the business world, Dominic O’Dierno supports the Oregon Children’s Theater (OCT).

Established in 1988, OCT creates exceptional theater experiences to encourage families and children to grow and learn. To this end, the organization maintains several programs that complement its theater productions, such as Ticket to Read. Designed from students from low-income schools, Ticket to Read lessens the education gap seen in schools of varying income levels.

Students at low-income schools receive a free theater ticket for a performance at OCT through the Ticket to Read program. For many of these students, the ticket will provide them with their first live theater experience. Alongside this, students get the book that the play is adapted from. They get to keep this book and take it home making it the first book many students have ever owned.

Through Ticket to Read supports students of varying ages, studies have shown that the third grade is a critical point when it comes to learning to read. Many students from low-income schools perform worse on reading tests than their peers from higher-income schools. The program classifies low-income schools as institutions that have at least 70 percent of its student population on a free or reduced lunch program.