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Literacy: Spanning the US

Book Drive Brings Literacy Home For Children Of Adult Learners

Turlock Journal: 12.03.2019

The first annual Giving Tree Book Drive, hosted by LearningQuest – Stanislaus Literacy Centers, invites community members to visit a Giving Tree site to pick up a tag and donate two to three new books for the child of a LearningQuest student – an adult learner working toward their educational goals.

Over 100 children have been signed up to receive the donated books in order to start or add to their home libraries. The book drive ends on Dec. 12, just in time for students to bring the books home for their children during the holidays and continue the foundation of literacy in the family.

The Giving Tree Book Drive was inspired by the many parents enrolled in LearningQuest’s free educational services and the growing research showing the impact of a parent’s education level on the literacy and employment of their child as an adult. Earning a diploma, learning English, or learning how to read and write holds an even greater responsibility when statistics show:

· About 50% of young adults will reach the same level of education as their parents.

· Adults with high school educated parents are 11% more likely to be employed than an adult with a parent that did not graduate from high school.

· In the U.S., adults with parents without a high school diploma earn a lower income (less than $28,000 a year) than those whose parents have a high school or college diploma.  READ MORE >>

Gunning Fog Index: 13.23

punctuation marks: 11  words: 240   3+ syllable words: 27

@indyreads

Indy Reads Teaching Hoosier Adults How To Read For Free

WISH TV: 12 .05.2019

Indy Reads is helping illiterate adults in Marion County. The non-profit organization’s CEO, Ryan King, told News 8 that one in every six Hoosiers read below a 5th grade level.

“We try to eliminate that stigma in our community that you can admit you don’t read and write at the skill that you want to, there’s a safe space that people can come to and learn to read and write,” King said.

Indy Reads sees about 300 adults a year. Raphael Edou is from Benin, Africa and said he moved to the United States in March. He is learning how to read and write in English with his wife.

“The language is not easy to learn. The pronunciation sometimes makes me nervous and makes me uncomfortable when I want to speak to people,” said Edou.

He’s expected to take the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) before enrolling into a university in 2020. Edou said he wants to either attend the University of Purdue or Harvard to earn a Master’s degree in International Relations and Global Climate Change.  READ MORE >>

Gunning Fog Index: 10.98

punctuation marks: 10  words: 180   3+ syllable words: 17

Literacy Council 

of Carroll County

Literacy Council of Carroll County Celebrating 40 Years

Baltimore Sun: 12.07.2019 by Kevin Dayhoff

On Tuesday, Dec. 10, the Literacy of Council of Carroll County will celebrate 40 years of work in the county.

I recently had the opportunity to talk with Sam Greenholtz about the good work of the Literacy Council. In addition to his years of work with the Literacy Council, Greenholtz served on the Westminster Common Council from 1985 to 1991 and for many years was the chair of the Greater Westminster Development Corporation, a downtown Westminster advocacy organization.

Many of you, who are fortunate enough to be able to read this discussion, may shake your heads and wonder just how great is the demand for a service in the community that helps teach people how to read. You would be surprised.

Several anecdotes immediately come to mind. For 10 years, through the 1990s, I was an election judge. One of the lasting impressions of working as an election judge was the number of folks who came to vote who could not read. Some explained straightforwardly that they could not read. Most explained that they had “forgotten their glasses,” and asked for help. Several were prominent Carroll County business owners.  READ MORE >>

Gunning Fog Index: 12.23

punctuation marks: 12  words: 189   3+ syllable words: 28