Literacy:
Spanning the U.S.
Giving
the Gift of the English Language
Go Local Worcester: 10.14.2015 by Guest
MINDSETTER™ Harvey Fenigsohn
Imagine coming to a new
country, leaving all that is familiar and comforting: your culture, your
friends, your family, and your roots. You find yourself baffled by a strange
and difficult language - one you know you must master to fulfill your dream of
advancing in your adopted homeland. This is the dilemma of the growing number
of immigrants who have come to Worcester in search of a better life.
Most of us descend from
immigrants who came to these shores knowing very little English. How can we not
empathize with today¹s new arrivals? After all, these newcomers must overcome
the same language barriers that stood in the way of our own forbears when they
arrived so full of the same hope and determination. Too often, immigrants suffered prejudice and
discrimination inflicted by those who came before them. But in the past, many
newcomers also experienced the kindness of strangers. Today, the newly arrived
continue to benefit from America¹s tradition of compassionate aid.
You, too, could become
part of this great benevolent tradition of service. If you have as little as an hour or two a week
to volunteer, you can have the satisfaction of enabling a grateful, deserving
person to fulfill his or her dreams. As I have done, you can join Literacy
Volunteers.
Our mission is to
empower adults to achieve their goals of a better life by mastering the English
language.
Our students are not
only immigrants. Unfortunately there are many native born Americans whose
literacy skills are below the 6th grade level. In Worcester County, nearly
twenty percent (82,026 people) are without a high school diploma. Often
secretly illiterate because of their embarrassment, some full-fledged citizens,
for whatever reasons, never learned basic English language skills. They
struggle to decipher road signs, to read their mail, and their newspapers. They
cannot read to their children nor can they fill job applications or read
warning labels on medications. READ MORE !
Springfield officials
laud renovated Pine Point Library converted to an adult literacy center
Mass Live: 10.15.2015 by Peter Goonan
City
officials gathered on Thursday at the former Pine Point Library on Boston Road to
praise the completion of renovations to the building that has allowed its use
as an adult literacy center and library express.
"I am thrilled to
have this site re-purposed for such a great use," Mayor Domenic J. Sarno
said in a prepared release. "We are delivering key adult education and
library services while saving significant dollars for the School Department. We
have improved and enhanced the overall quality of the building, ensuring it
will provide services for at least the next 30 years."
The city-funded renovations
occurred in phases and totaled $1.5 million. The work included asbestos
abatement, remodeling for classroom space, a conference room area, renovated
restrooms and making the building fully handicap accessible, officials said. READ MORE !
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Eulalia President of
North Charleston gets national literacy award
Post & Courier: 10.15.2015 by Brenda
Rindge
A former high school
dropout was recognized Thursday at a national literacy conference in North
Charleston.
Eulalia President, 36,
received a national achievement award for adult learner excellence at the
Annual ProLiteracy Conference at the North
Charleston Convention Center.
President dropped out
of Burke High School when she was 15 and pregnant. By 18, she had two children,
and five years later, a third.
As a single mom, she
worked odd jobs for several years to support her children.
“It just was not me,”
said the North Charleston resident. “I wanted more for me and for my children.
I wanted to be a great leader for them.”
Eighteen years later,
after raising three children, she went to Trident Literacy
with the goal of obtaining her GED, which she did in 2013.
“Raising three
children, working and taking classes presented several challenges,” she said.
“One day I said to myself, this will not be the end of your journey.” READ MORE !
OFLP strives to
encourage community learning
Area
Wide News: 10.15.2015 by A.K. Barnes
The Ozark Foothills Literacy Project (OFLP)
services Sharp, Fulton, Izard and Independence Counties. AmeriCorps members and
volunteer tutors help adults learn English or improve their reading skills. By
helping adults speak English or read better, OFLP is fostering new
relationships and working to build a more confident, educated and informed
community.
The services provided
by the OFLP are adult basic education, which is one-to-one tutoring for
students who read below an 8th grade level. They also provide ESL services,
one-to-one tutoring for students who do not read, write or speak English
fluently.
OFLP was founded in
2007 by the Jubilee Family Church as a separate non-profit organization. The
church was looking for a service project and realized that there wasn't
anything in place to help adults who didn't read well.
They began the
Independence County Literacy Council to fill that gap. Until 2010 the Literacy
Project was an all-volunteer organization. At that point, the church took the
remaining funds for the organization and hired a part-time director, Nicole
Stroud.
The mission of the OFLP
is to empower adults and improve communities through teaching literacy. READ
MORE !
Family literacy
programs bridge gaps for ESL parents
Victoria Advocate: 10.17.2015 by Carolina
Astrain
Marylou Flores has
a much better handle on the English language than she did four years ago.
"I want to
study," Flores, 33, said. "I want to go to college to study to become
a teacher."
Flores was at Victory
Christian Life Center with her son Efrain Avila, participating in the Family
Literacy in Practice, also known as FLIP, program, which is a part of the Victoria Adult Literacy Council and
Victoria College.
"She still needs a
little help," said Efrain, a fifth-grader at Shields Elementary School.
"It makes me happy that she's trying and she has gotten better."
Sandra Gonzalez, FLIP
coordinator, said the difference between her program and the regular offerings
through the Victoria Adult Literacy Council is that FLIPS includes educational
opportunities for children for non-native English speakers as well.
"Children will
break off and with a children's teacher," Gonzales said. "Our
families also get a book of the week." READ MORE !
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