PAT FLYNN SASSO
RAISING A READER INITIATIVE OFFICER

Pat oversees the implementation of Raising A Reader®, a parent involvement “read-aloud” book bag program, in San Mateo County. Pat develops and delivers technical assistance and training to Raising a Reader sites and acts as a lead conduit for local communication to the organization’s national headquarters. Pat also assesses, orders and distributes the book bag materials local sites need to implement the program.

Before joining Silicon Valley Community Foundation, Pat worked as a child development center site director serving mostly low-income families, many of whom were immigrants. There she found forming partnerships with families both a rewarding and effective way to increase the quality of early childhood education for the center’s children.

She has also taught middle school language arts, elementary school reading classes and early literacy curriculum in preschools. Understanding the power of literacy and the essence of family engagement, she has spent a significant part of her professional journey researching methods that most effectively support families to encourage their children’s early literacy development. Pat has a bachelor’s degree in English and a master’s in early childhood education.

Pat enjoys reading, both fiction and non-fiction, walking the Bay Area’s coastal paths and going to the theater. She and her husband have a son in college and a daughter in high school. Time spent with her family is particularly precious.