SACRAMENTO -- Castori Elementary School students on Thursday, June 9 will take a field trip to State Fund's Sacramento District Office where they'll meet with some of their 'teachers' of the past five months - for the first time.

Eighty-nine students from the school in Sacramento's Del Paso Heights area will meet their advisors: 89 State Fund employees who volunteered their time from February through June to serve as "pen pals," as well as mentors, for a program that the students' actual teachers say has improved their basic writing and grammar skills as well as attendance.

For the past six years, State Fund’s Sacramento District Office employees have partnered with Castori Elementary School and the North Sacramento School District to help students improve their skills in two of "The 3 Rs" and prepare them for middle school.

"The program has helped improve reading and writing scores and increased students' enthusiasm for writing," said Erik Swanson, who coordinates the program at Castori. "The sixth-grade students consider the Pen Pal program one of the highlights of their year. All of the students get very excited when the initial letters from the Pen Pals arrive."

Under the State Fund/Castori "Pen Pal Program," State Fund employees correspond regularly with the students for five months and provide instruction on writing, grammar, and spelling. "Graduation" is marked by a field trip to the Sacramento District Office where students meet their pen pals and are served lunch and ice cream. In addition, State Fund employees donated $10.00 for each student and purchased gift certificates to a local retailer as an incentive for achieving their literary goals. The volunteer employees also attend Castori's formal graduation ceremonies.

Students are also encouraged to send drawings, pictures, and other items.

"Before long, employees had letters, pictures, sketches, paintings, and even poems in their cubicles," commented State Fund claims adjuster Amy Goins, who helps coordinate the program and also sponsors a student.

"We are very grateful to Castori Elementary School for the opportunity to help make a difference in a youngster's life," said Sacramento District Office Manager Gary W. Dunlap. "Every year this program creates excitement in the office because everyone involved hopes to make a positive impact on our community."

EDITOR'S NOTE: Created by the California Legislature in 1914, State Fund is a nonprofit, self-supporting, fairly competitive public enterprise that guarantees a permanent workers’ compensation insurance marketplace for California employers. State Fund has acted as both a moderating and stabilizing influence on the workers’ compensation market.