Juan has passed the test to be accepted in the pre-GED course at the community college! His score was 226 compared to his previous score of 183. Juan was very complementary of the help he received from the Literacy Council and felt the literacy and math he learned contributed greatly to the difference in his scores.
Lisa
Twelve tutors attended the September 6th pizza party at Katie Williams’s home. Tutor trainer Deborah Stoeckle coordinated the event, which allowed tutors to get to know one another while exchanging ideas/suggestions/tutor resources concerning their students. These meetups will now be offered quarterly in different parts of the county.
We have won the 2012, 2013 and now 2014 Top-Rated Great Nonprofit award, as well as the GuideStar Exchange Seal, demonstrating the AACLC’s commitment to transparency. Please take a moment to check out our 73 reviews and add one of your own if you haven’t already.
Since its founding in 2007, GreatNonprofits has grown into the leading provider of reviews and ratings of nonprofit organizations throughout the U.S. GreatNonprofits has received media coverage in Newsweek, the Chronicle of Philanthropy, Alliance magazine, and on NPR, and is endorsed by USA Today, the Economist, the Huffington Post, and the LA Times. [See Great Nonprofit & GuideStar].
Guidestar Seal of Transparency
Above: Tutor Al Odierno and student Marc
Tutor Al Odierno firmly believes that much of the good in this world is done by people who labor quietly in the background. Well, it doesn’t get much quieter than a back table at the county library branch in Edgewater. There, Al and his student Marc meet for two hours each week to work on reading, writing, communication, and organization skills.
Marc, who lives in Davidsonville, works full-time for the Prince George’s County school system in their bus maintenance division. But his true love is centered on his work as a volunteer firefighter at the Woodland Beach firehouse, where he hopes to become an EMT someday. When Marc realized that his literacy skills needed improvement, his captain at the firehouse–who admired Marc’s hard work and positive attitude–recommended that he contact the AACLC.
Once he started working with his tutor Al, it quickly became apparent that Marc had brought his impressive work ethic and good cheer to each tutoring session. “Aside from being a motivated, patient, and dogged learner, Marc also has keen intellectual curiosity,” notes Al. “Each week we read an article or letter-to-the-editor from The Capital, and then talk about it. Once, when we were reading a particularly long article together, we had to stop mid-way to go on to something else. But Marc insisted we return and read the whole thing; he wanted to have a complete understanding of the article. That made my night!”
Marc says he realizes how reading well is not only an important practical skill; it also creates opportunities for “a better life and lifestyle.” He sums up his experience with the AACLC: “It’s definitely been worthwhile. The ‘one-on-one’ teaching approach works very well for me.”
Tutor Al agrees. “I’m a pretty traditional educator in a lot of ways, but it’s become more clear to me than ever before that people learn in different ways. When I was educated, teachers followed a one-size-fits-all approach that didn’t always work so well. Today’s educational system is very aware of learning differences, but cannot realistically address every single one. At the Literacy Council we are able to do just that–and it’s not that complicated. We simply return education to its essence: face-to-face human interaction.”
Please take a moment to check out our new-and-improved Literacy Library page at https://icanread.org/literacy-
Above: Tutor Bonnie Wright and Student Winston
Winston and I have met twice a week for lessons at the Brooklyn Park Library since mid-May. He is an intelligent, soft-spoken young man who wants to improve his reading ability and ultimately achieve a GED. Winston’s actively searching for better career opportunities, too: He recently lost his job due to cutbacks and is eager to find work in the building, carpentry, or drywall fields.
Winston’s the kind of man who seeks out ways to contribute to his community, and has a special interest in volunteering at Harbor Hospital. His dedication is obvious, so I’m not very surprised by the great progress he is making–completing Laubach 2 and starting to tackle Laubach 3. I’m especially impressed by his growing self-confidence.
And I think all of us at the AACLC have a hand in Winston’s success. Not long ago, Literacy Council Director Lisa Vernon and her husband Tom observed Winston and me working together during a tutoring session. Afterwards Winston was quite impressed that they took the time to come by, remarking “I feel like I have a whole team behind me in my learning.”
Above: Della and Ray Glenn with County Councilman Jerry Walker
The Southern Anne Arundel Chamber of Commerce gave its annual Gene Hall Award to AACLC tutor Della Glenn and her husband, Ray. This award is given to a deserving citizens in Southern AA County who, without fanfare, plays an instrumental role in giving back to the community by helping improve the life of others.
Congratulations, Della and Ray!
Anne Arundel Cares Week will run from Friday, September 5th through Thursday, September 11th. AACares will be giving away three $2,500 challenge grants to their nonprofit partners who raise the most money through the Anne Arundel Cares website during this period. We won a $2,500 challenge grant last year and hope to do so again this year!
Stay tuned for more information about what website page to use for helping us meet this challenge.
Save the date!
Our next tutor training is scheduled for October 11th & 18th, 2014, 9:00 am to 4:00 pm, at Woods Memorial Presbyterian Church in Severna Park, and will include both Basic Literacy and ELL instruction. We have a class size limit of 35, and our March training filled up quickly. If you, or someone you know, would be interested in attending this training, please email programdirector@aaclc.
[NOTE: The dates for this training given in the July AACLC newsletter were incorrect. Please use the information above.]
