Literacy – Spanning the US :: Pontotoc Co OK :: Jefferson Co WI :: Rochester NY

Literacy: Spanning the U.S.     

Pontotoc Co

Literacy

DAR Chapter Hosts January Meeting Pontotoc County Literacy Coalition

Ada News: 2.16.2019 by Tommie Beddow

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Chapter Regent Mary Scalf introduced the speaker for the meeting, Patsy West. Patsy has been involved with the Pontotoc County Literacy Coalition since 1984. She serves as a member of the board of directors, as a tutor trainer and as a tutor for the Adult Literacy Program. She is also a secretary for Delta Kappa Gamma and a member of the PCREA.

Patsy grew up on a farm in Coal County and graduated from Tupelo High School. She earned her bachelor’s and her master’s degrees at ECU and taught elementary school at Prague; St. Louis, Oklahoma; and Tecumseh before finishing a 39-year career at Picket-Center as a teaching administrator. She has lived in Ada since 1972 with her husband, Ronnie. Their two daughters make their homes near Ada, where Patsy and Ronnie enjoy the activities of their three grandsons and one granddaughter.

Ada Library

Patsy brought a handout for each person with information on literacy in Pontotoc County, the nation and also the world. The Adult Literacy Program in Pontotoc County is located on the second floor of the Ada City Library. Funding for the program has been reduced by the state in recent years, but the guidelines have been expanded, making it hard to keep the program at a level to meet all the needs in Pontotoc County.

There are 36 million people in the United States reading below third-grade level, with Oklahoma ranking 41st in the nation in reading literacy. The Pontotoc Country Literacy Coalition works with people at their points of need so that they can achieve their goals.  READ MORE >>

JCLC

JCLC Helps Residents Achieve Dream Through GED

Daily Union: 2.18.2019 by Pam Wilson

The Jefferson County Literacy Council does more than just teach adults how to read. It helps people with low literacy skills — whether native English speakers or members of the English Language Learners community — to achieve their dreams through language and literacy instruction, technology and GED training.

The local nonprofit has its offices in the Jefferson Area Business Center, but it serves people all around the county, with a mission of developing a better community through literacy.

The organization has a small paid staff and it also makes use of a pool of some 50 volunteers who serve as one-on-one tutors and board members. Its funding comes through grants and contracted services with the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office for its work with the jail population.

Lynn Forseth, director of the JCLC, said that illiteracy and low literacy drives many other social problems, such as unemployment or underemployment, poverty, crime and even health problems.

The JCLC got its start in 1996 when three librarians from across the county organized a group to help adults improve their reading skills, in response to a need they saw in their own communities.

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In Jefferson County, as in Wisconsin as a whole, 38 percent of households fall under that category.  READ MORE >>

Literacy Volunteers

Rochester

Digital Literacy Program Working On Job Prep And Battling The Digital Divide

WXXI News: 2.19.2019 by Alex Crichton

Literacy Volunteers of Rochester held its first Job Prep Event Tuesday at the Sully Branch Library on Webster Avenue in the city.

It’s designed to help people with basic computer skills according to Digital Literacy program director Brian Kane.

@MCLS

`Helping people with resumes, either creating them or reviewing them.  We’re going to be answering any computer related questions that they have.  We’ll have people here helping them to make referrals to educational opportunities or other services that they might need,” he says.

In a statement about Digital Literacy, Kane says that every day, “our volunteers see Rochester area residents who struggle in the job market and who have serious challenges with technology. And the biggest challenges are often the lack of computers and access to the internet.”

He says they’ve seen an explosive growth the past four years in the number of people coming to Digital Literacy asking for help.

About 20 percent of city households don’t have internet access, and Digital Literacy’s partnership with the Rochester City School District/OACES and libraries aims to help people bridge that digital divide.  READ MORE >>