Literacy – Spanning the US :: Little Rock AR :: San Diego CA :: San Luis Obispo CA

Volunteers partner with Literacy Action to teach female inmates how to read

THV11: 3.08.2017

In January 2016, volunteers From Westover Hills Presbyterian Church partnered with to provide one-on-one tutoring through the separation glass with the female inmates at the county jail.

@LiteracyAction

One year later, in response to the rising interest in tutoring services, Literacy Action, through volunteer tutors from Westover Hills, now offers literacy classes to 15-20 women once a week in a more traditional classroom at PCRDF.

Beginning this year, Literacy Action will also begin offering its first literacy class for male inmates. There are already 4 students signed up and eager for the opportunity to improve their literacy skills. Sara Drew, Executive Director of Literacy Action, comments, -"Some of the men in this program are veterans, so this gives them a chance not only to voice their war-time experiences, but also an opportunity to improve their employability when they leave the facility."

Meeting in a classroom has given the students more opportunities to interact with their volunteer tutors to receive instruction and to complete group projects. The student population is constantly shifting as women transfer to prison, return home, or enter rehabilitation programs. Yet, these challenges do not deter the students from learning. By working on vocabulary, punctuation and writing, the tutors are able to improve the skills that inmates will carry with them as they move forward in life.

One particular student, one of the youngest in the class at 18, plans to return to college. She wants to make her family proud of her again and improve her life by getting a good job. "We know that recidivism is lowered when we can educate the inmates and give them opportunities to change their lives," said Pulaski County Sheriff Doc Holladay.  WATCH VIDEO 📺

@SDLiteracy

Eat Drink Read - San Diego Council on Literacy

KUSI: 5.13.2017 by Milo Loftin

A signature foodie mainstay, this year's "Eat.Drink.Read. A Culinary Event for Literacy" will challenge chefs to think outside the "book".

"One in five adults in San Diego possess below-basic literacy skills," says Jose Cruz, CEO of SDCOL. "Many of these adults are also parents, and their children become adversely affected by low-level reading skills at home. We work to address this problem through our literacy programs which are funded, in part, through Eat.Drink.Read."  WATCH VIDEO  📺

2017 Tutor Recognition Event

Literacy For Life: 5.11.2017

Thank you to all who attended out Tutor Recognition Event this past Saturday at the Library Community Room! We had a wonderful turnout and enjoyed celebrating the hard work and achievements of our valued tutors! We were also proud to present the Jan Breidenbach Lifetime Achievement Award in loving memory of Henry “Jim” Rooney, a tutor who devoted over a thousand hours of time through his many years with our program. Special thank you to the event chair, Sharaya Olmeda, as well as the other event coordinators, Michael Miller, Val Houdyshell and Judy Scott. We would also like to recognize Faten Bsaili who spoke courageously about her experiences with the program at the event.

Welcome to Literacy Trivia :: Voices For Literacy

Welcome to Literacy Trivia

Barbara Bush Foundation

Voices For Literacy

We know you love to read…but how much do you know about literacy?

Start Literacy Trivia now, and find out!

On the way, you’ll learn more about Voices for Literacy, a group of committed organizations who are leveraging their expertise and resources to ensure that everyone has an opportunity for an education no matter their age.

Our ultimate goal is to have literacy advocates in every corner of the United States — people like you who value reading and will stand up to ensure literacy for all.

Have fun…and then invite your friends to take the challenge too. Together, we can advocate for an America in which everyone has the power to read, write and make their voice heard!

Literacy – Spanning the US :: Brooklyn NY :: Milwaukee WI :: Athens-Limestone Co AL

@NYCCAL

Immigrant, advocate groups rally at Borough Hall to protest proposed education cuts

1,800 Brooklyn students fear $12 million budget cut in de Blasio proposal

Brooklyn Eagle: 5.10.2017 by John Alexander

“Education is a right, budget cuts are wrong,” was shouted from the steps of Borough Hall on Wednesday morning, as students from all across the borough joined elected officials to protest a feared $12 million budget cut in education programs. They lined the steps of Borough Hall holding up signs protesting proposed cuts for English programs that they believe are essential for immigrants to learn the language and find better jobs.

Councilmember and Immigration Committee Chair Carlos Menchaca addresses crowd at education budget rally.

According to the New York City Coalition for Adult Literacy (NYCCAL), a collection of nonprofit community-based organizations, libraries and City of New York (CUNY) branches that provide English language and other adult literacy programs, Mayor Bill de Blasio’s 2018 Executive Budget contains a $12 million funding cut that will eliminate literacy classes for more than 5,500 students throughout the city, including 1,800 in Brooklyn alone.  READ MORE @

@LiteracyWI

Adult literacy organizations to merge

Milwaukee Business Journal: 5.11.2017 by David Schuyler

The two major adult education services organization in Milwaukee — Literacy Services of Wisconsin and Milwaukee Achiever Literacy Services — have agreed to combine forces in an effort to expand their reach to students and increase job readiness for those in need.

Both organizations’ boards anticipate a final approval of the merger by July 1.

The combination will represent the culmination of the more than six months of financial analysis, strategic planning with board members and other business leaders, and investigation with staff and clients, said Ginger Duiven, executive director of Literacy Services of Wisconsin, who will serve as executive director of the merged organization.

The merged organization will be named Literacy Services of Wiscosnin [sic] Inc.

“We are excited to announce this partnership that we’re confident will greatly enhance our already successful, decades-long efforts,” Duiven said in a press release.

Joining forces should allow the organization to attract more philanthropic and corporate support and operate more efficiently, Duiven said.

“LSW and MALS are two of the strongest local organizations providing adult basic education, including GED and job readiness training.  READ MORE @

Learn To Read

Athens/Limestone

Learn to Read Council gets Dollar General grant

News Courier: 5.12.2017 by Lauren Thornton Tobin

In an effort to boost local literacy efforts, the Dollar General Literacy Foundation again awarded funds to the Learn to Read Council of Athens-Limestone County.

The adult literacy grant will help fund the council's salaries, classroom materials, computer software and supplies.

The adult program is for ages 16 and up, and helps those who have low-level reading skills, use English as a second language and struggle with math.

“We've had some (students) who passed everything on their GED except math,” Andrews said. “We had three math students last year who all passed the test and got their GED after coming here.”

Like the children's program, the adult program features different platforms for students to learn from.

“We have one-on-one instructors if students prefer or if they want a classroom setting, they can work in the computer lab,” Andrews said.

Andrews said she knows it can be intimidating for some adults to ask for reading help, but she emphasized the council's student confidentiality.  READ MORE @

Further Budget Cuts to Adult Education Hurt Everyone :: ProLiteracy

Further Budget Cuts to Adult Education Hurt Everyone

ProLiteracy Blog: 5.18.2017 by Peter Waite

Raymond Geddes

The budget proposes at least a 16% reduction for adult basic skills programs and even greater reductions in other areas.

We have seen an early preview of the president’s proposed education budget for fiscal year 18. The formal budget will be out on May 24, but this preview gives us a hint of what we will see at that time.

Disappointedly, the budget proposes at least a 16% reduction for adult basic skills programs and even greater reductions in other areas. This is not a surprise considering that preliminary reductions of 13% across the board were earlier announced.

While the proposed reductions are unfortunate, the greater disappointment is that once again the awareness of adult literacy and its importance in the greater spectrum of education is not evident in this budget. The key role that adult literacy plays in the advancement of children in the K-12 system continues to be lost on policymakers and budget developers.

The undeniable link between parents and the improvement of children in public education has been proven since the early 80s. Studies by the Ford Foundation during that time flatly stated that any efforts at improving children’s literacy will FAIL without a complementary adult literacy program.

The new budget proposal once again attempts to improve the public education system by putting additional resources into charter schools, school choice, and similar K-12 initiatives, all at the expense of adult literacy programs that are critical to the success of these efforts.

At ProLiteracy, we will continue to fight the proposed federal cuts in adult literacy spending. We will do all we can to promote and underscore the critical value of adult education as it relates to families, children, and the overall health of the nation.

House Votes to Limit Powers of First Black Librarian of Congress

House Votes to Limit Powers of First Black Librarian of Congress

San Diego Voice and Viewpoint: 5.17.2017 by Lauren Victoria Burke

In a vote of 378 to 48, the House passed legislation to take power away from the current Librarian of Congress, Dr. Carla Hayden.

The legislation, H.R. 1695, was authored by House Judiciary Chairman Bob Goodlatte (D-Va.) and ranking member John Conyers (D-Mich.), would limit the powers of the librarian. It is expected to pass the Senate and be signed into law by President Trump.

The bill makes the head of the Copyright Office, the Register of Copyrights, a presidential appointment that would have to be confirmed by the Senate, rather than an appointment by the Librarian of Congress, as it has been since 1870. The bill also limits the position of Librarian of Congress to a ten-year term.

The previous Librarian of Congress, James Billington, served in the position for 28 years.

President Barack Obama appointed Hayden the 14th Librarian of Congress on February 24, 2016. =She is the first African American to hold the position, as well as the first woman to be the Librarian of Congress, in the agency’s history. On March 23, legislation was introduced to block Hayden from appointing the next Register of Copyrights. That legislation passed the House on April 26.

Supporters of the bill argued that the legislation would help to modernize the Copyright Office and make it more accountable to Congress. Attempts to contact the office of Rep. John Conyers (D-Mich.) for details on why he authored H.R. 1695, were not answered.

“This bill serves no purpose other than to take power away from the Librarian of Congress and give it to powerful lobbyists, who will have a major say in who runs the Copyright Office,” wrote Michael Masnick on TechDirt.com on April 26. “It’s a bad bill, and it’s a gift to Hollywood.”  READ MORE @

Literacy – Spanning the US :: San Bernardino Co CA :: Waldo Co ME :: Brownsville TX

Highland Library program aims to improve adult literacy

Highland News:  4.20.2017

The San Bernardino County Library is pleased to provide adult literacy services to the Highland community.

The adult literacy program features individualized literacy services in one-on-one, confidential, student-centered sessions. The program is intended to equip participants with lifelong learning skills and prepare them for personal, family, career, and community success. Best of all – this program is absolutely free.

The adult literacy program at the Highland Branch Library is improving the quality of life for our residents and making a big difference in our community. The library is proud to offer a program that fosters confidence and enables our learners to pursue new opportunities for success.

If you or someone you know struggles with literacy, the Highland Library is here to help. For more information on the San Bernardino County Library system and the adult literacy program, visit www.sbclib.org or call the Hesperia Branch Library directly at (909) 425-4700.

Highland’s adult literacy program plays a key role in San Bernardino County’s Vision2Read program, which seeks to make literacy a reality for all residents of San Bernardino County.  READ MORE @

Waldo Reads

Literacy Volunteers host 30th anniversary celebration

Waldo Village Soup: 4.2102.017

Literacy Volunteers of Waldo County invites community members to help celebrate its 30th anniversary with a free buffet meal, documentary and speaker Thursday, May 4, 5:30 to 8 p.m., at Waldo County Technical Center in Waldo.

The celebration will be an occasion for all who care about literacy to come together to reflect on the power and pleasure of reading — be it by gaining fluency and understanding with words, math problems, computer skills or the English language, according to a press release. In “Looking Back, Looking Forward,” this event will honor the organization's past 30 years — and the many years ahead — of creating opportunities for learning partners to come together.

The stories of what tutors and their learning partners discover together will be shared and celebrated through a video documentary. Guest speaker Mitch Littlefield will highlight the positive impact of a student-teacher relationship. Littlefield is the author of “Memories of Shucking Peas,” a collection of stories written because of the encouragement of a middle school English teacher.  READ MORE @

Brownsville

Literacy Center

Brownsville Literacy Center works to help public

Brownsville Herald: 4.22.2017 by Kaila Contreras

For 30 years, the Brownsville Literacy Center has dedicated itself to improving the community’s literacy rate by offering courses and sometimes free tuition.

“Thirty years ago, Mary Yturria, Doug Hardy, Christie and Richard Burden and Raul Tijerina felt there was a need for an educational program to help the community, and what (the founders) did was conduct a survey via The Brownsville Herald,” Executive Director Victor Rivera said. “At the time they thought, ‘Let’s survey the community and see if there is a need for literacy.’”

Throughout the years, the literacy center has changed locations four times.

“We started to grow, we got more students and so we felt we needed to find a bigger location,” Rivera said.

The literacy center’s mission statement is to “promote literacy in the Brownsville area by providing appropriate and accessible educational programs designed to meet the needs of underserved adults and families.”

Some of the classes offered are English as Second Language, the Family Literacy Program and the Computer Skills Training Program.  READ MORE @

Nation’s Best Selected for National Medal for Museum and Library Service

Nation’s Best Selected for National Medal for Museum and Library Service

IMLS: 5.15.2017

The Institute of Museum and Library Services today announced the 10 recipients of the 2017 National Medal for Museum and Library Service, the nation’s highest honor given to museums and libraries for service to the community. For 23 years, the award has celebrated institutions that respond to societal needs in innovative ways, making a difference for individuals, families, and their communities. The award will be presented at an event in Washington, D.C., this summer.

The 2017 winners of the National Medal for Museum and Library Service demonstrate impactful programs and services that exceed the expected levels of community outreach and are known as catalysts for community change. They were selected from 30 finalists across the country nominated for the honor.

The 2017 National Medal recipients are:

Alaska Department of Education and Early Development (Alaska State Museums (Juneau, Alaska)

Aspen Art Museum (Aspen, Colorado)

Cedar Rapids Public Library (Cedar Rapids, Iowa)

Illinois Holocaust Museum & Education Center (Skokie, Illinois)

Leigh Yawkey Woodson Art Museum (Wausau, Wisconsin)

Long Beach Public Library (Long Beach, California)

Peralta Hacienda Historical Park (Oakland, California)

Richland Library (Columbia, South Carolina)

University of Minnesota Libraries (Minneapolis, Minnesota)

Waterville Public Library (Waterville, Maine)

“We are proud to honor these 10 institutions with this year’s National Medal for Museum and Library Service,” said Dr. Kathryn K. Matthew, director of the Institute of Museum and Library Services. “These institutions play a critical role as community catalysts and provide vital resources that drive economic development, foster community well-being, and spark neighborhood revitalization. We are proud of all 10 museums and libraries and celebrate their ongoing commitment to their communities.”

After the ceremony,  StoryCorps—a national nonprofit dedicated to recording, preserving, and sharing the stories of Americans—will visit each recipient to document stories from the community.

The next deadline for nominating a museum or library is October 2, 2017.

Learn more about the National Medal.