I’m Not That Guy Anymore :: I hated school—until a 15-year prison sentence

I’m Not That Guy Anymore

@BPIBard

I hated school—until I got slapped with a 15-year prison sentence and discovered calculus, Mandarin and the college degree I never knew I wanted.

Reason To Be Cheerful: 9.26 2019 by Alexander Hall

Most people agree that we need education. Public education in particular is thought to be the “great equalizer” in free societies, ensuring an equal chance of success to everyone. In a democracy, what could be more important? But there’s something that most people leave out: not all education is created equal. Real education is not just about school or a core curriculum. It doesn’t just teach you what to think, but how to think—and how to keep thinking for the rest of your life.

I understand the difference between the effective and the ineffective kinds of education more intimately than many.

I understand because I received both types—a public school education that was uninspiring and a college education that changed my life. I went from hating school as an adolescent to loving it as an adult. And my path from public education to private college tells the story of the power that education, done right, can have—even in the darkest of places. Because here’s the twist: when I finally did encounter this real education, I was five years into a 15-year sentence in state prison.

Working a few dead end jobs and hanging out partying ate up about three years after that. Being liked, fun and a little crazy gave me a reputation I didn’t mind having. I was 21 and didn’t worry much about the future. But that ended in 2005 after a bad party, a bad fight, a gun and a train of terrible decisions that I can never take back.

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Things I wish my old self had known

My life and the lives of many other people changed dramatically amid this tragedy. But this is also where my relationship with education changed. The moment I realized I was going to prison, I suddenly wanted to go back to college. It felt like I had let so many people down, my family in particular, that I needed some form of redemption. School seemed like the answer. I wanted to show my family—perhaps also myself— that I still had value. It took me five years to get there, but at age 26 I finally had a chance to apply to Bard College’s Prison Initiative (BPI) at Eastern Correctional Facility. The application process was competitive, scary and uncertain. After weeks of waiting, I was ecstatic when I received an acceptance letter.  READ MORE >>

This story is part of:

Education Against the Odds

Literacy – Spanning the US :: Delaware Co PA :: Alpena Co MI :: Monterey Co CA :: Richmond VA

Literacy: Spanning the US

Delaware County 

Literacy Council

Delco Literacy Council Honors Jahlil Beats As ‘Champion of Literacy’

Delco Times: 8.25.2019 by Peg DeGrassa

Orlando “Jahlil Beats” Tucker will receive the 2019 Hometown Hero Champion award at Delaware County Literacy Council’s 7th Annual Champions of Adult Literacy Quizzo Fundraiser on October 23 at Harrah’s Casino and Racetrack in Chester. Jahlil is a multi-platinum Grammy® Award–winning music producer from the City of Chester who is committed to creating a thriving future for Chester and its residents.

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To inspire residents to value education, Jahlil offers “Js for As” at his Villa store. Young people from Chester can receive a discount on Nike Jordan sneakers when they bring in their good report cards.

Jahlil sees literacy as a key to improved opportunities.

On being named a Champion of Adult Literacy, he commented, “There is one thing you must understand that I had to endure, will continue to endure, and make sure I continue to educate my children on. To be successful you have to build a foundation. In order to build a solid foundation, you must educate yourself and have the communication skills that will help you on your path to success.”

Champions of Adult Literacy celebrates champions who inspire and support the work of the Delaware County Literacy Council. Also being honored on October 23 will be the Delaware County Library System, which has been named 2019 Community Champion, and Tatiana Moskatova, who will be honored as the 2019 Student Champion.  READ MORE >>

@AlpenaCoLibrary

Reading Tutors Needed For READ Adult Literacy Program

Alpena News: 8.26.2019 by Darby Hinkley

If you enjoy reading, and can’t imagine life without out, you might want to help others enjoy it too.

Many adults in our community struggle with illiteracy. One way to help is to become a reading tutor with the READ Adult Literacy Program at the Alpena County Library.

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“This is a wonderful service that the library provides,” said Leslie Kirchoff, who co-coordinates the READ program with Pat Hummel. “It’s completely free to any adult that wants help with learning to read, reading better, learning English as a second language, or help studying for the GED.”

The program has been in place for more than 30 years.

“The library has always provided support for this program,” Kirchoff said.

Tutors will work individually with adults seeking help with basic reading, ESL (English as a Second Language), and GED preparation. Tutors will meet with their student 2 to 3 hours per week.

“Working with adults who want to learn is very rewarding,” said READ tutor Mary Ann Crawford. “I have enjoyed working with adults from Turkey, China, and Columbia who wanted to improve their English skills. We learned a great deal from each other and developed a friendship in the process.”  READ MORE >>

Monterey County 

Free Libraries

Mary Jeanne Vincent, Career Talk: Give The Gift Of Literacy

Monterey Herald: 8.26.2019 by Mary Jeanne Vincent

If you can read and write, thank a parent, teacher or sibling.

I grew up in a family of readers. One of my earliest memories is snuggling on my mother’s lap with my younger sister while mom read us a story. I headed off to school already knowing how to read, not because I was so smart but because I had so many willing readers in the family.

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Twenty years later, someday arrived. I approached the Seaside branch librarian to learn how to become a literacy tutor. I filled out the Monterey County Free Libraries application, attended training and met my learner.

You may be surprised to discover that of the 197 nations worldwide, the United States ranks 125th in literacy with just 86% of our population able to read, write and do basic math.

In Monterey County, 25 percent of the adult population reads below the fourth-grade level. Lest you think it is only the immigrant population who are illiterate, 29 percent of Appalachian adults are considered functionally illiterate.  READ MORE  >>

@TheREADCenter

Adult Literacy Crucial To Child's Academic Success

Richmond Times Dispatch: 8.26 2019 by Karen La Forge, Executive Director-The READ Center

The recent articles on SOL reading scores, college and career readiness and the editorial “Reading by third grade” have highlighted the importance of reading and education for students returning to classes in the next few weeks.

What about the students who already have graduated or left school without being able to read well?

Some come to The READ Center for help. The READ Center is an adult literacy nonprofit serving adults older than age 18 who need to improve their reading, writing, basic math and digital skills. About 1 in 6 adults in the city of Richmond lacks basic literacy skills. They would struggle to read this letter, fill out a job application, read medical information or help their children with homework.

Seventy-six percent of READ Center students read at or below the fifth-grade level, even though 96% are older than age 25. Job training programs and GED classes require sixth- to eighth-grade reading levels to participate. Low-literate adults often are unemployed, take low-paying jobs and work multiple jobs to make ends meet.

Children of low-literate adults have a 72% chance of being at the lowest reading levels themselves. Parents are our first teachers. If they cannot read well, they cannot teach their children or support their education.  READ MORE >>

People Who Read Before Bed Not Only Sleep Better, But Eat More Healthily and Make More Money via Real Simple

People Who Read Before Bed Not Only Sleep Better, But Eat More Healthily and Make More Money

Real Simple: 9.06.2019 by Maggie Seaver

If your go-to bedtime routine includes winding down with a great book, you’ve got a good thing going. We know you know that already (that’s why you keep doing it!), but yreading before going to bed is not only working for you—it seems to have amazing, self-reported benefits for the masses, according to a recent survey.

Mattress and sleep product review site Sleep Junkie took the liberty of surveying 1,000 people about both their sleep habits and bedtime routines—namely, whether or not they read in bed.

Participants who read in bed at night range from those who read once a week to every night: 11 percent of survey takers read one or two nights a week, 12 percent read three or four, 7 percent read five or six, and 8 percent read every single night. Of the crowd getting a few pages in five or more nights a week, the average time spent reading comes out to 43 minutes.

The results don't lie: Whether they crack open a book three times a month or every night without fail, all respondents said doing so promotes relaxation, reduces stress, induces sleep, centers the mind, and improves sleep quality. All good things. Nearly three quarters of bedtime readers believe they’d have a harder time falling asleep if they didn’t regularly read in bed, and almost everyone (96 percent) would recommend reading before bed to others.

Compared to only 64 percent of non-bedtime readers, 76 percent of bedtime readers report being satisfied with their sleep quality. Not only that, but over the course of a week, bedtime readers clock an extra hour and 37 minutes than non-bedtime readers—that’s a lot of precious Zs.  READ MORE >>

National Literacy & Library Events :: October 2019

National Literacy & Library Events :: October 2019

Literacy & Library Events & Conferences

Events-National & International Events

Events-International: Language Magazine

Health Literacy Month

Dyslexia Awareness Month

National Book Month

TeenTober

Oct. 02      Random Acts of Poetry Day

Oct. 02      Closing the Gap Conference Prior Lake MN

Oct. 02      Connected Learning Summit UC Irvine

Oct. 02      Zero to Three Ft Lauderdale FL

Oct. 03      Comic Con New York

Oct. 03      Conference on Learning Disabilities San Antonio TX

Oct. 03      Texas Health Literacy Conference San Antonio TX

Oct. 04      National Storytelling Festival Jonesborough TN

Oct. 05      World Teachers' Day

Oct. 05      National Dropout Prevention Conference Denver CO

Oct. 05      Picture Book Summit Cyber Space

Oct. 07      Global Read Aloud :: Just A Minute: A Trickster Tale by Yuyi Morales

Oct. 08      AAACE Conference St Louis MO

Oct. 08      Natl Council for Workforce Education Conf San Antonio TX

Oct. 10      International Literacy Assoc Conference New Orleans LA

Oct. 11      Day of the Girl

Oct. 13      Plain Language Day

Oct. 13      Children's Literature Day ILA Conference New Orleans LA

Oct. 14      Global Read Aloud :: Nino Wrestles the World by Yuyi Morales & Julie Flett

Oct. 16      Dictionary Day

Oct. 16      Alliance for Children and Families Conference Indianapolis IN

Oct. 16      NAREN Annual Conference Baltimore MD

Oct. 16      Urban Libraries Council Forum Salt Lake City UT
Oct. 17      Black Poetry Day

Oct. 20      National Day of Writing

Oct. 20      National Friends of Libraries Week

Oct. 20      Literacy for ALL Conference Providence RI

Oct. 21      Global Read Aloud :: Viva Frida by Yuyi Morales

Oct. 21      Internet Librarian Monterey Conference Center Monterey CA

Oct. 21      Conference on Afterschool and Summer Learning Atlanta GA

Oct. 24      Changing The Odds Conference Dallas TX

Oct. 24      National Black Book Festival Houston TX

Oct. 25      IBBY Regional Conference Austin TX

Oct. 25      Rutgers Conference Reading & Writing New Brunswick NJ

Oct. 27      Health Literacy Leadership Institute HARC X San Diego CA

Oct. 28      Global Read Aloud :: Little Night/Nochecita by Yuyi Morales       

Oct. 28      Make A Difference Day

Oct. 28      Nonprofit Storytelling Conference San Diego CA

Oct. 29      COABE Virtual Conference

State Library Associations :: Conferences

African American Book Events

Book Fairs by State Library of Congress

Children’s Book Council Kid Lit Events

College Children’s & Young Adult Literature Conferences Festivals

Everfest Book Festival Calendar

ILA :: Literacy Calendar Worldwide

Storytelling Events

US Book Festivals

Literacy – Spanning the US :: Leon Co FL :: Greenville SC :: Campbell Co VA

Literacy: Spanning the US

@LiteracyLeon

Floridiana Reading Supports Literacy Volunteers

Tallahasse Democrat: 8.20.2019

Literacy Volunteers of Leon County presents Floridiana, an evening of relaxed reading and anecdotal asides, at 7 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 22 . . .

Floridiana is "fun, funny and not for the faint of heart." Nationally known local authors Mary Jane Ryals, Pamela Ball, and Robert Olen Butler are the selected readers for this year’s Floridiana panel.

The event benefits LVLC’s free literacy, language and job skills development programs.

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This event supports Literacy Volunteers of Leon County, which provides free literacy, language, and job skills development services. Other outreach programming includes Family literacy workshops and events. This year, Literacy Volunteers provided ongoing tutoring services to over 250 clients and provided work and job skill help to more than 150 community members.

September is Literacy Month

September is National Literacy Month and Literacy Volunteers of Leon County is celebrating the success stories of their students during this past year and looking forward to the upcoming year.  READ MORE >>

Greenville Literacy

Endowment gives Greenville Literacy Association Flexibility To Keep Up With Changing Needs

Greenville Journal: 7.18.2019

The Greenville Literacy Association is committed to ensuring all community members can take advantage of Greenville’s growth, offering classes in adult literacy and basic education and English as a second language (ESL) to provide the skills needed to meet employer demand.

A thriving economy creates new job opportunities, but without the right skills and training, not everyone can participate. The Greenville Literacy Association is committed to ensuring all community members can take advantage of Greenville’s growth, offering classes in adult literacy and basic education and English as a second language (ESL) to provide the skills needed to meet employer demand.

John Jaraczewski, who joined GLA as executive director in February, said class participation fluctuates with the economy, but the need for quality, affordable adult education remains.

“In a strong economy, enrollment lags, but literacy levels and educational attainment are the same — students just have a harder time getting to us because of work and other barriers,” he said. “But if they don’t improve their skills and build for the future, they have less opportunity for growth.”

To adequately respond to student and employer needs, GLA has had to become more adaptable.

“Studying is hard work, so we need to do whatever we can to remove the barriers that prevent them from getting a life-changing credential such as a GED,” Jaraczewski said. “They need us to be entrepreneurial in bringing our services directly to those who need them.”

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“We’ve partnered with the Greenville Drive to provide English classes for their Latin players during homestands. Their employer, the Red Sox, is committed to advancing the lives of their players,” Jaraczewski said. “We’re also offering ESL coursework at The Cliffs at their invitation, along with conversational Spanish, so employees can work together more collaboratively and create a more inclusive workplace.”  READ MORE >>

@CCPLibraryVA

Lynne Wheeler Receives Award For Outstanding Literacy Program Director

Campbell County Library: 8.2019

Words can change worlds.  Perhaps not on a global scale, but definitely on a personal level.

Lynne Wheeler, the Program Manager for Campbell County Public Library System’s Literacy Program, has witnessed this on more than one occasion.

@VAELN

Lynne, who has been the Literacy Program Manager since 2010, was recently recognized by the Virginia Literacy Foundation for her efforts as a leader among literacy program directors in the Commonwealth.

On July 12, at the Blue Ridge Conference Center in Roanoke, she was commended as the 2019 award recipient of the Nancy Jiranek Outstanding Director of a Nonprofit Literacy Program in Virginia.

“I started as a volunteer,” said Lynne.  “After completing the tutor training, I was matched with a student with low-level reading skills. It was an eye opening experience to realize the sorts of difficulties she faced.”  READ MORE >>

Celebrate Adult Education and Family Literacy Week 2019 via OTAN

#AEFLweek

Celebrate Adult Education and Family Literacy Week 2019

OTAN News: 9.23.2019

First proposed by the *National Center for Literacy (NCL) in the early 2010s, the National Adult Education and Family Literacy Week this year is September 22 to 28. This week is a great opportunity for adult education programs to promote the many ways they are working to raise adult literacy levels in their local communities and across the country.

NCL and ProLiteracy, two national organizations committed to combating adult illiteracy in the US, have compiled a number of resources to better understand literacy issues and their impact on individuals and families, and resources to advocate for more funding and services that tackle illiteracy and support adult learners.

AEFL Week resource links – There are a variety of resources here: fact sheets, advocacy materials, and other information from NCL and some of its partner organizations.

Census 2020 resource links – With the census coming up next year, topics include an overview of the 2020 Census, how people are counted, census jobs, resources for teaching and learning and for programs, and advocacy.

Social media activities and messaging – How to spread the word about AEFL Week on social media, including messaging developed in a number of topic areas (also available here on the ProLiteracy website: Sample AEFL Week Social Media Messages). ProLiteracy has included a logo and social media images and videos on its Adult Education and Family Literacy Week Toolkit

ProLiteracy has its Toolkit with sections on adult literacy facts, suggested activities, sample letters and media releases, and social media.

Make the most of Adult Education and Family Literacy Week by highlighting and sharing your adult learner successes!

*National Coalition for Literacy

ProLiteracy Conference Awards :: Sep 25-28 San Diego

@ProLiteracy

ProLiteracy Conference Awards

Sep 25-28 San Diego

ProLiteracy

ProLiteracy is pleased to announce the winners of several awards that will be presented at the 2019 ProLiteracy Conference on Adult Education.

Dollar General Student of the Year Award

Bushiri Salumu

Nominated by Literacy Volunteers of Charlottesville/Ablemarle

Charlottesville, VA

Ruth J. Colvin and Frank C. Laubach Award for Excellence

in Community-based Adult Literacy

Jessica Wabler

Nominated by YWCA National Capital Area

Washington, D.C.

Ruth J. Colvin and Frank C. Laubach Award

for Adult Learner Excellence

LaDelvin Walker

Nominated by Flint and Genesee Literacy Network

Flint, MI

Award for Program Innovation and Collaboration

The Literacy Center

Evansville, IN

Literacy – Spanning the US :: Huntington Beach CA :: Bradenton FL :: Cadillac MI :: Phoenix AZ

Literacy: Spanning the US

Huntington Beach 

Library Literacy 

Writer to Writer

Literacy Volunteers-HBPL Blog: 5.23.2019

Writer to Writer is a unique writing challenge through the Southern California Library Literacy Network (SCLLN). Writer to Writer invites adult literacy learners to write a letter to an author whose writing has changed the way they think about life. A group of learners from Literacy Volunteers-HBPL participated in the challenge this year. We hope you enjoy some of their letters!

Dear Mr. Gary Chapman,

I read your book The Five Love Languages of Teenagers and I want to say that this is a wonderful book.  This book is having a good impact on me.  It’s taught me many things, like how parents focus more on the errors of their teenagers and the parents forget to give affirmation words.  Parents are hurting who they most love.  Parents and teenagers both battle with each other and both end up hurt.  Another thing that as parents we forget to do is the right thing when the teenager makes mistakes.  Love your teenager when they fail.  This book helped me understand my teenager.  My relationship with my daughter now is better.  I’m trying to be a better mother following the advice from this book.

The next book that I’m reading is The five Love Languages of Children.  READ MORE >>

@Manatee_Reads

Adult Immigrants Pursue Integration Through Language In Manatee County

WUSF: 8.19.2019 by Cathy Carter

Public schools are known for helping children who don’t speak English as a native language. But there isn't as much focus on "English Language Learner" education for adults with a similar language barrier.

Everyday situations like filling out a job application, reading street signs or going to the doctor can be daunting for someone born in a non-English speaking country.

In Bradenton, 140 immigrant adults from 39 countries are learning to read, write, and speak English with tutoring from the nonprofit Manatee Literacy Council.

According to recent data, 83.52% of Manatee County residents speak only English, while 16.5% speak other languages. The non-English language spoken by the largest group is Spanish, which is spoken by 11.57% of the population.  LISTEN 04:25

Adult Literacy 

Council

Experts Explain Why Regular Reading Is Important, Even For Adults

Cadillac News: 8.20.2019 by Chris Lamphere

Kids are constantly reminded by their parents and teachers that reading is an essential skill necessary for some of the most rudimentary activities of daily life.

Adults don’t necessarily get that reminder on a regular basis and many go long stretches without reading anything, sometimes because they aren’t interested and other times because they aren’t good at it.

Experts say the importance of reading doesn’t end when one becomes an adult; some research even suggests there are substantial cumulative benefits that accrue as a result of regular reading.

According to Pew Research Center, 24% of American adults report they haven’t read a book in whole or in part in the past year.

The survey results also showed a correlation between household income and amount of reading one does.

Adults with annual household incomes of $30,000 or less are about three times as likely as the most affluent adults to be non-book readers (36% vs. 13%).

Joshua Anderson, director of Adult Literacy Council of the Friends of the Cadillac Wexford Public Library, said studies have shown that participants in learn-to-read programs increased their incomes by an average of a little under $10,000 (in 2013 dollars) if they attended 100 hours or more of the program.

He said there are many reasons why people tend to make more money if they can read and write proficiently, including something as simple as being able to draft an adequate cover letter on a job application.  READ MORE >>

Southwest Valley 

Literacy Association

Donate The Gift Of Reading

Your Valley: 8.20.2019 by Mark Carlisle

For those of you reading this, I’m sure you take for granted how important your literacy is. I do the same.

Those of us who learned to read at a young age overlook how important the ability to read is in our every day lives. You may be surprised to know that it is not at all uncommon for American adults to be illiterate.

Thirty-five million U.S. adults read below a fourth-grade level, according to the National Center for Education Statistics. That’s equivalent to one in six adults 65 and younger. That statistic sure surprised me.

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Literacy Volunteers 

of Maricopa County

But there’s something you can do to help.

Two local nonprofits have made it their mission to help adults in the Valley gain literacy skills. The Southwest Valley Literacy Association and Literacy Volunteers of Maricopa County both offer free literacy services to adults.  READ MORE >>