Literacy – Spanning the US :: Bangor ME :: Knoxville TN :: St Cloud MN :: Seneca Co NY

Literacy: Spanning the U.S.     

@LitVolBangor

One of Literacy Volunteers of Bangor First Tutors Reflects On Experiences

WABI TV: 2.20.2019 by Courtney Cortright

This year, the Literacy Volunteers of Bangor is celebrating 50 years as an organization. They've come a long way since they began. We spoke with Paula Adelman. She's one of the group's first tutors.

Paul Adelman said, "I saw a video of a mother going to give her child, a baby, some medication, and she couldn't read what the prescription was on the bottle."

It was a moment that triggered Paula Adelman's motherly instinct.

"I had three little kids, and I thought, oh my Lord, this woman could kill her child while she's trying to help her child," added Adelman.

Paula answered the call for help in 1969, the year Literacy Volunteers of Bangor was founded. The organization is dedicated to helping adults who may not be comfortable with their reading and writing skills.

"The co-founders went around to everyone and said, you be the secretary, you'll be the treasurer, and they came to me and said, you're going to be the first chairperson," explained Adelman.

Although hesitant at first, it was a challenge Adelman was ready to take on.

Mary Marin Lyon, Executive Director, said, "Paula was part of that very first group of tutors."

Adelman said, "I got my first student. He wanted to get his driver's license and improving his life and I got him up to the third grade, 4th grade, and he took his driver's test and oral test and after that, he drove off into the sunset because that was his goal."  READ MORE >>

@supportliteracy

Friends of Literacy: 10 Percent Of Adults In Knoxville Are Functionally Illiterate

WBIR: 2.20.2019 by Emily DeVoe

Sharon Kocuba has been a teacher for more than 20 years, but she never tires of seeing the impact an education can have on someone, no matter their age.

“You may see an older student out in the neighborhood later who’s done beyond what they did in my class. It’s a success story,” Kocuba said.

Angelita Ortiz, a mother of two, is one of Kocuba’s students at Friends of Literacy, a nonprofit that helps adults improve their reading, writing and math skills.

“She does her homework every night. She asks questions and is very honest about what she knows and what she doesn’t know. She’s the ideal student,” Kocuba said.

Ortiz grew up in New York where she dropped out of school at an early age.

“I made bad choices when I was younger,” Ortiz said. “I was a troubled teenager and dropped out at an early age. I’m glad I came here.”

In 2018, 174 adults took classes at Friends of Literacy. 80 percent started at or below an 8th grade level. 60 percent started below 6th grade.  READ MORE >>

@GRiverLibrary

Library Receives Grant To Fund Literacy Project

SC Times: 2.20.2019

Great River Regional Library received a grant worth more than $89,000 to fund a year-long literacy project.

The project, "Breaking Down Barriers to Family Literacy," will provide opportunities for people to improve digital literacy and for non-native speakers to practice English in "informal, stress-free settings," according to a press release.

@US_IMLS

The Institute of Museum and Library Services provided funds through the Grants to States Program administered through the Department of Education.

All Great River Regional Library staff will receive cultural fluency training as part of the program. The grant also helped the library hire two part-time bilingual cultural navigators to assist Somali-speaking patrons.

The project is a partnership between Great River Regional Library, Adult Basic Education, Career Solutions and Partners for Student Success.  READ MORE >>

Literacy Seneca

Fourteen Students Cited By Literacy Volunteers of Seneca County

Finger Lake Times: 2.21.2019 by David L Shaw

Fourteen students were recognized for making progress by Literacy Volunteers of Seneca County at the organization’s recent annual dinner.

One of them was a 30-year-old named Stanley, who has worked with tutor Chuck DeParde for four years to learn to read and write.

“For a long time, I was really messed up,” Stanley said. “Now my goal is to learn to read and write and do math.”

DeParde said Stanley “started from absolutely nothing.”

“He is now in Book 4. He has made great progress,” he added.

Executive Director Kathy Sigrist said one of Literacy Volunteer’s challenges is removing the shame felt by older people who have limited reading and writing skills. She said it’s never too late to improve one’s skills in these areas.  READ MORE >>