organization profile of the pclc 2 11
DESCRIPTION
Portage County Literacy CouncilTRANSCRIPT
February 2011
To help Portage County adults develop basic math and English literacy skills necessary to achieve economic self-sufficiency and community integration.
On the most basic level, literacy is defined as “the ability to read and write.”
would say that it’s not just the ability to read and write, but also to understand, use and apply what you read, and to communicateeffectively in writing.
It is also a social practice or social currency, and, as such, a key to social mobility . Learning the hidden rules and cultural codes of the dominant culture, according to this perspective, facilitates upward mobility.
Literacy levels are connected to most of the pressing social and economic issues:
unemployment
poverty
homelessnessrates of
incarceration
social
assistance
welfarechild well
being
child school
performance
community
integration
Poverty
Employability
Access to
Community
Resources
Access to Health
Care
Self sufficiency
The relationship between level of education and poverty is clear.
The National Institute for Literacy estimates that 43% of adults with very low literacy skills live in poverty.
About 70% of adult welfare recipients have low level literacy skill on the National Assessment of the Adult Literacy (NAAL).
In Portage County:
3,800 residents do not speak English at home
25% of whom live below the poverty line
752 are “linguistically isolated”
• Also known as
ESL or ELL
• 90% of learners
English
Language
Learners
• Learning or
cognitively
disabled
• 10% of learners
Adult
Basic
Education
Learners
Learners come from more than 17 countries
and speak more than 10 native languages.
We serve 170 adults ranging in age from 18-74
We serve more women then men; most of whom are mothers
Our largest learner populations are Hispanic and Asian
ELL Classes VolunteerTutors
Self-pacedComputer Learning
A World of Difference
Workplace
Personal
Community/
Citizen
Lifelong Learning/ESL
Refer a learner to the PCLC
Volunteer to be a tutor Be a tutor recruiter Support the local United
Way Volunteer for a
committee or event Become a fan of our
Facebook Cause Read our blog Sign up for our
newsletter Make a donation online
Thursday, April 14, 2011
Holiday InnStevens Point
Be a sponsor!
Come and play!
Desiah Melby, Executive DirectorPortage County Literacy Council1052 Main Street, Suite 104Stevens Point, WI 54481(715) 345-5341