Literacy: Spanning the US
Opera, Movies, Zombies, Ice Skating
Are All Part of Jane Austen Takeover of Modesto
Modesto Bee:
12.26.2019 by Deke Farrow
Jane
Austen’s takeover of Modesto began quietly enough this fall: An emphasis on her
works by LearningQuest-Stanislaus Literacy Centers
for its adult learners. A 244th birthday party for the English novelist in a
downstairs room of the downtown library. An escape room, also at the library,
with puzzles designed to inspire participants to read her works and learn more
about her life.
Soon,
though, it will take to the streets, the stage, the silver screen and even a
skating rink. And it won’t be over until the slender lady sings.
It’s
a Jane-vasion, with Opera Modesto and its production of the opera “Mansfield
Park” at the center.
Opera
Modesto board member Hillari DeSchane long has wanted to do an opera based on a
work by Austen, said Roy Stevens, the company’s general and artistic director.
Her wish is coming true thanks to “Mansfield Park,” a 2011 chamber opera by
composer Jonathan Dove, based on Austen’s third novel, published in 1814.
Stevens said he and his opera-singer wife, Annalisa Winberg, who is Opera
Modesto’s artistic consultant, saw a way to stage the work primarily using
members of the company’s TOP Young Artists program. Before long, “we realized
we had a potential catalyst to do something more with the community,” he said.That
“something more” ended up being the Story Into Song Literacy
Initiative, for which Opera Modesto has partnered with LearningQuest, the
Stanislaus County Library, the State Theatre, the Becoming Jane Austen Book
Club (of which DeSchane is a member), city and county schools and the Downtown
Modesto Partnership, among others.
The
initiative is a great way to build excitement around literature and the arts,
said library director Sarah Dentan. “We’re excited to partner with Opera
Modesto to promote books and reading, as well as the arts and humanities,” she
told The Bee in an email. “By offering complementary events at the library, we
can extend our existing fan base, and perhaps introduce readers to storytelling
through song.” READ MORE
>>
Flesch-Kincaid
Grade Level 13.4
Lexical
Density: 63.4%
Total
word count 325
Unique
word count 206
18
hard words
Sentence
count 14
 |
New Volunteer Database To Help
Midcoast-Area New Mainers Settle In
News
Center Maine: 12.30.2019 by Beth Brogan
With
some 120 asylum seekers now living in Brunswick, the town's "cultural
broker," Nsiona Nguizani, is learning more every day about how best to
help these New Mainers thrive.
In
August, the town hired Nguizani, originally from Angola, to help asylum seekers
who moved from Portland to transition to life in Brunswick.
The
challenge was formidable, Nguizani says. One family left their home country
when their child was two-and-a-half. They arrived in the United States when he
was five.
"You
don't know how much time they passed in each country, but it was a long
journey," he says. After a struggle to integrate into a kindergarten
classroom in Brunswick, Nguizani said today, "They're playing like crazy,
all the time they want to ride the bike, all the time they want to run. It's a
playground everywhere."
Soon
after he was hired as the town's cultural broker, Nguizani called Don Lader of Midcoast Literacy in Bath.
Lader's
Bath office is lined with books, but literacy in reading and writing isn't his
only goal.
His
organization, funded entirely by donations and private grants, also helps
people prepare for citizenship tests, teaches computer literacy and other
skills. READ
MORE >>
Flesch-Kincaid
Grade Level 9.5
Lexical
Density: 70.6%
Total
word count 187
Unique
word count 132
12
hard words
Sentence
count 11
 |
| Literacy Council Black Hills |
Literacy Council of the Black
Hills, Giving The Gift Of Literacy
News
Centet 1-TV: 12.31.2019 by Anya Mueller
The
famous Dr. Suess was quoted as saying “The more that you read, the more things
you will know. The more that you learn, the more places you’ll go.”
And
in today’s society, if someone can’t read, it can limit your experience, like
getting a job or just getting around town. That’s where the Literacy Council
steps in to help.
Jin
Washington helped at a Literacy
Council in Omaha when she found her passion for helping others learn to
read. She continued her work in Rapid City because she feels like the mission
is important.
Jin
Washington, Literacy
Council of the Black Hills, Program Director, says, “I fell in love with it, before that I didn’t
know so many people are illiterate, and so I just really felt it was important
to help people to read better and because I love reading.”
The
Literacy Council is an all-volunteer, nonprofit that serves immigrants, or
English as a second language students from over 10 countries as well as
(American) teen and adult students. WATCH
02:23
Flesch-Kincaid
Grade Level 10.5
Lexical
Density: 65.3%
Total
word count 170
Unique
word count 111
7
hard words
Sentence
count 8
 |
Two Area Literacy Nonprofits Merge
Biz Times:
1.02.2020 by Lauren Anderson
Milwaukee-based
Literacy Services of Wisconsin and Greater Waukesha Literacy, two
nonprofit providers of adult education programs, have merged.
The
combined organization, which will retain the Literacy Services of Wisconsin
name, plans to expand its adult job readiness development, English language
learning and GED/high school equivalency diploma programs, according to a news
release.
“We
are pleased to join with Greater Waukesha Literacy to deliver critical adult
literacy services to the residents of Waukesha County,” said Jim Paetsch,
president of the LSW board. “One’s ability to read and write is not only the
gateway to civic participation, it’s a fundamental requirement for finding
meaningful employment. Merging with GWL enables us to extend the geographic
reach of LSW services and deepen our regional impact.” READ MORE
>>
Flesch-Kincaid
Grade Level 16.7
Lexical
Density: 71.3%
Total
word count 122
Unique
word count 87
10
hard words
Sentence
count 5
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