Spreading the Love of Literacy

Meet Olga Baez, the heart of the Bronx-based non-profit determined to give Bronx children a space to learn and grow outside of the classroom.

Olga reading to the attendees of the Valentine’s Day storytime on Feb. 11, 2024. Photo by Olivia D’Andrea

Excited giggles, rambunctious feet, and eager ears gathered in the front of the room for this month’s themed storytime at the Oval Park Recreation Center. Parents discreetly snapped pictures of their little ones listening intently to a reading of The Mystery of the Love List by Sarah Glenn Marsh. 

“Can someone tell me what a mystery is?”

“It’s, like, when something is suspicious.”

“What a great word! Suspicious…”

Olga Baez is the founder of the Bronx-based nonprofit StriveHigher Inc., an organization that focuses on providing literacy and financial educational programs to underserved students in kindergarten through fifth grade. Through her Saturday storytime events and financial literacy programs, Baez is committed to giving back to the community that raised her. The organization works alongside Fordham University to provide children with meaningful educational experiences, completely free of charge. 

Being a Fordham alumna and a former employee of the university herself, Olga understands the importance of integration into the surrounding neighborhood. 

“It’s better for kids to see someone from their community, right? Someone who lives in the Bronx, has grown up in the Bronx, and has a master’s degree. I think those are things that are not typical, unfortunately, in our communities,” said Olga.

So why reading programs? Why financial literacy workshops? Baez serves as a role model for the students who attend StriveHigher programs. She explained how parents are significantly less involved in their children’s academics by high school. She wanted to change that narrative. “Some children are just not as lucky as I was,” she said. “It's almost like once you know how to do better, you do better. right?”

And she does more than better. Approaching children’s education holistically is at the root of her cause. StriveHigher’s initiatives focus on intervention at an early stage in a student’s academic career, while also providing a safe space for children to learn responsibility, creativity, and effective communication through reading and financial education.

Having received a higher education of her own, Olga began her career in the realm of high school counseling at LaGuardia High School amid a nationwide job freeze.  

“I had a caseload of 400 students. There will inevitably be students just falling between the cracks just because there’s just not enough counselors for everyone.” But Olga wanted more; she wasn’t just going to let kids slip through the cracks of the education system. 

The lack of in-school programs and support systems further inspired Olga’s mission on a personal level. Her daughter, Jade, was unable to attend a coding program for girls at a local charter school because she wasn’t enrolled at that particular school. This idea of inaccessibility proved to be a major setback not only for Olga and her daughter but for the vast majority of Bronx children. 

Accessibility and affordability have remained StriveHigher’s most important priorities. The grassroots non-profit runs solely on financial donations, meaning Bronx families don’t pay a dime for its programs or workshops. 

“I don’t want to charge them [the families], period. I know a lot of our families come from low-income households, and that makes it even more challenging for me to charge people.” 

Working alongside Fordham’s campus ministry has provided StriveHigher with the opportunity to host events on campus, alleviating the pressure of costly space rentals and allowing Fordham students to volunteer during events. While larger non-profit organizations around New York City have the resources for success, they may not reach everyone. 

“$50 a month may not sound like a lot, but for many families, especially locally, it is. And that’s why we do what we do,” Olga said. 

Olga says she is excited about the future of StriveHigher. Over the past six years, Olga has provided a space for children to flourish academically and socially. Baez remains hopeful for the next generation of StriveHigher students, and she eagerly looks forward to high school graduations and college acceptances. Most of all, she looks forward to continuing to let kids be kids. “I know I inspire these kids, as a leader and a mentor, someone that represents them,” she said.

“But if only they knew how much they inspire me every single day. I can’t wait to see them succeed.”