Did you know?
Research has found that volunteering is good for you.
“A study by Sara Konrath at the University of Michigan showed that volunteerism predicts a longer life,” Dr. Emma Seppala says. “Interestingly, volunteerism lengthened lives only when the volunteerism was done for selfless reasons.”
The connection isn’t totally clear, but according to
Harvard Medical School, volunteering may lower blood pressure, reduce stress, and reduce depression.
Save the Date!
Date: Thursday April 26th
Time: 6 PM – 8 PM
Place: Woods Memorial Church
Severna Park
A fabulous buffet dinner will be followed by a short but exciting program to celebrate our volunteers, students, and our 41st anniversary serving Anne Arundel County.
Please make plans to attend and bring your family/friends with you for a night of fun and celebration!
Great tutor training opportunity!
Our next 2-day tutor training is scheduled for
February 24th and March 3rd
9:00 am to 4:00 pm
Woods Memorial Presbyterian Church in
Severna Park, MD
and will include basic literacy, math, and English Language Learner (ELL) instruction.
We have a class size limit of 35. If you, or someone you know, would be interested in attending this training, please email Lisa Vernon at director@aaclc.org or call 410-269-4419 as soon as possible to reserve a seat.
Saturday, February 24th
9am – noon
Founders Room
Wood’s Memorial Presbyterian Church
Severna Park
This workshop will cover the basics of GED-level algebra for tutors who have not worked with math for a while and would like a refresher. The topics we will cover include: signed numbers, equations with inequalities, systems of equations, and polynomials. If you have one, please bring a calculator (TI-30XS) with you as well.
by Janice F. Booth
“This year I got the best Christmas present ever; I got to read to my grandkids.” Reading to his grandchildren is one of many “firsts” for Ray Williams. “My dad, Herbert Scurlock, is bedridden. This Christmas, for the first time, I was able to go over to his house and read [to] him the Christmas card I’d gotten for him.” Ray is determined to turn these “firsts” into regular events. Determination is one of the hallmarks of Ray’s character. [click to continue…]
In the fall of 2016 former Literacy Council student Angel Cleckner was talking with Charlene Renaud, one of her hair styling clients, who confessed that she was unable to read. At Angel’s urging, Charlene contacted the Council for help and was assessed and matched with tutor Bonnie Wright. [click to continue…]
“The function of education is to teach one to think intensively and to think critically. Intelligence plus character—that is the goal of true education.” ~ Martin Luther King, Jr. #TeachBetter
While each of our students is unique, they share a determination to rise above adversity and difficult circumstances to provide a better future for themselves and their families. For example:
- A new student walked almost 2 miles so she could meet her assessor – on time – after her car gave out. She is tired of working for Temp agencies which offer low salaries and no benefits or job security because the companies she works for all have HS diploma requirements for their full-time employees.
- A young man who says he is “finally setting himself free and coming out of the darkness” by admitting that he needs and wants help with his reading and writing skills. His immediate goal is to secure his driver license so that he can apply for better jobs and succeed at taking additional job training.
Yi Yang
“My ESL student Yi Wang wrote the attached story in response to the prompt: “Describe a city that would be your ideal place to live.” I love what she wrote. It is so evocative of the beauty of the city, her birth and happy childhood, and the immigrant experience of living where everything is strange, including the landscape. And, of course, it is a sad tale of how ‘…we don’t know what we’ve got till it’s gone,’ as Joni Mitchell sang.”
-tutor Anne Kelleher
Click Here to read Yi Yang’s Story.