Smiling faces and tears of joy were on display last week at the Oakland Literacy Council’s annual graduation ceremony at its offices in Bloomfield Hills. Thirty-two students graduated the reading and/or listening program.  With their proud families and tutors in attendance, the literacy grads gratefully accepted their certificates from the Council’s Board President, Judy Lindstrom.

During the ceremony, students spoke of the impact the tutors had made in their lives, both as

teachers, mentors, and friends.  A Russian student, Elena Babin, who came with her infant son, explained how her tutor, Irene Sinclair, gave her confidence during her labor and delivery.  Prior to the birth they practiced conversations with nurses and doctors to assertively communicate her needs.  Elena said, “I didn’t have to worry about English while giving birth.”

Woo Jin Yoon, a student from South Korea, talked about how her tutor, Hannah Hilbert, became her first American friend.  The friendship, according to Yoon, blossomed when they went to a brewery and beer festival.  Yoon plans to start a party planning business soon.  Another graduate, Hpwe Lwin, from Burma already owns two businesses and was grateful her tutor helped her improve her English skills.  Each graduate expressed appreciation for the time and patience given to them by their tutors.

Job Descriptions- Development and Communications Assistant

In celebration of the 35th anniversary of the Oakland Literacy Council, we have lined up an amazing guest speaker for our biggest fundraising event of the year, the Ex Libris dinner. On Thursday, November 14, 2019, Pulitzer Prize-winning author and Washington Post editor David Marannis will share a riveting story from his childhood in Detroit. The story about how his father was swept up in the anti-Communist fear that swept the country in the 1950s is the subject of Marannis’s newest book, A Good American Family: The Red Scare and My Father. Please save the date for this wonderful evening in which we will hear Marannis’s story as well as honor the many stories of our students, tutors, and long-time advocates who together weave a powerful tapestry of our collective work in Oakland County. And consider becoming a sponsor of this wonderful fundraiser. More information on sponsorship can be found here.

 

This spring, seven conversation groups for our English language learners are underway throughout Oakland County. Currently, groups meet in Troy, West Bloomfield, Bloomfield Hills, and Rochester Hills. Some meet during the day; some in the evening.

Conversation groups are organized with students whose listening and speaking ability is about the same level. This approach differs from other conversation groups in the area that are open to everyone. Our approach ensures all students can participate equally.

Samantha Most is facilitating her second, six-week conversation group at the West Bloomfield Township Public Library on Thursday evenings. The group attracts English language learners from Poland, Ukraine, China, Japan, South Korea, and Syria.

“I’ve noticed that the students love learning about other cultures,” says Samantha, who also tutors a student one-on-one through Oakland Literacy Council. Recently, she asked her conversation group how the arrival of spring is recognized in students’ home countries. Some countries had special celebrations.

At each conversation group, Samantha also introduces a few vocabulary words, and the students practice using the words in conversation.
The intention behind the conversation groups is to give students another venue for practicing their listening and speaking skills beyond their individual tutoring sessions. The more practice they get, the faster they will progress in their studies.

The Trump Administration’s proposed fiscal year 2020 budget calls for a 24 percent cut to Title II Adult Education State Grants, from which Oakland Literacy Council receives funding.

Low literacy is as prevalent now as 20 years ago, yet there are fewer public resources dedicated to solving the problem. In the state of Michigan, a cut at the federal level would be a continuation of a trend, as support for adult education has fallen 87 percent from the 1995-96 school year.

The funding decline has hit already under-served cities particularly hard. The latest casualty is Hazel Park, a city where the poverty rate hovers near 30% and two-thirds of the high-school students drop out before graduation. Budget shortfalls forced Hazel Park to shutter its adult education program in July 2018.

Some programs have closed as well, while others remain operational but with reduced service. Walled Lake, for instance, could not afford repairs to its outdated community education center, so adult ed programming was forced to share space with a middle school, which led to the elimination of daytime programming for adult ed, triggering a decline in enrollment. Evening programming is difficult for many low-literate adults who lack evening child care. Pontiac, another impoverished community, almost closed last summer, too, and now operates on a slim staff and emergency funding.

Currently, no adult education programming currently exists for adults in high-need Oakland County communities of Madison Heights, Oak Park, Hazel Park, or Southfield. While surrounding adult ed classes will enroll adults whose communities lack their own programming, we know that this population often lacks transportation to access services beyond their neighborhood borders.

While the Trump Administration’s proposed budget has been received with criticism and may not pass, it is true that adults in Michigan have increasingly limited access to adult education programming that could lift their literacy levels. The bottom line: it’s even more important today that Oakland Literacy Council is here to bridge the gap.

Bloomfield Hills, MI – Oakland Literacy Council will launch a free, 12-week series of classes for adults with low reading levels who live, work or go to school in Oakland County. The classes will be led by a seasoned, certified teacher from noon to 2 p.m. on Tuesdays and Thursdays at Oakland Literacy Council’s office in Bloomfield Hills beginning on Feb. 5. Interested students are invited to an orientation on Tuesday, Jan. 22, or Thursday, Jan. 24, at noon.

“Because the class will meet for four hours a week, students will enjoy a sense of community while quickly building their reading fluency and comprehension skills,” says Lisa Machesky, executive director of Oakland Literacy Council. “We are excited to offer the classroom model because it has proven successful in other counties, especially for students who want to brush up on their reading skills before enrolling in a GED preparation program.”

The classroom model is in addition to the core service offered by Oakland Literacy Council of tutoring adults with low literacy by matching each one with a trained volunteer tutor. On any given week, 200 student-tutor pairs meet weekly for two hours throughout the county to build practical English skills.

Students interested in the new class should call the council office at 248-253-1617.

The Oakland County Board of Commissioners has recognized Oakland Literacy Council Board President Judy Lindstrom for her many years of “exceptional dedication, leadership, generosity and philanthropy.”

Judy first volunteered as a tutor for Oakland Literacy Council in 1997. Seven years later, she stepped into her first leadership role. Today, in addition to presiding over the council’s Board of Directors, she chairs the council’s annual fundraising dinner, Ex Libris.

“It is no exaggeration to state that without Judy, and her invaluable contributions and leadership, the organization as we know it would not exist,” declared a proclamation adopted by the county commissioners. “Judy truly understands the meaning of giving back and has made a positive and lasting impact on the community.”

Lindstrom said she was overwhelmed to receive the recognition. “I am truly blessed to be part of the Oakland Literacy ‘family,’” she said. “The dedication and hard work of our tutors, students, staff and board never ceases to amaze me.”

 

 

 

October 25, 2018 – Bloomfield Hills, Mich. – Oakland Literacy Council announced that Anne Curzan, a noted linguist and expert in the history of the English language, will deliver the keynote speech at the council’s annual fundraising event on Thursday, November 1, 2018, at the Village Club in Bloomfield Hills.

Curzan is the Geneva Smitherman Collegiate Professor of English and an Arthur F. Thurnau Professor at the University of Michigan. She is the author of several books on the English language and a contributor to the “That’s What They Say” segment on Michigan Radio as well as a language blog for the Chronicle of Higher Education.

Now in its 34^th year, the council’s Ex Libris event will also feature a current student who has learned English with help from an Oakland Literacy Council tutor. In addition, the event will honor the contributions of local civic leader Barbara Van Dusen. “Barbara has been a longtime supporter of literacy efforts in general and the Oakland Literacy Council in particular,” said from Judy Lindstrom, president of the council’s board of directors.

The event will begin with cocktails 6:30 p.m. followed by dinner at 7:30 p.m. at the Village Club, located at 190 East Long Lake, Bloomfield Hills.