Newsletter

Literacy Council & Seattle Public Library: A Literacy Partnership

LCS Volunteer instructors are now teaching four ESL classes at the Central library and four classes in various branches. This winter a Beginning Level 2 class was added downtown and a Beginner 1 class was added at Rainier Beach branch.

Our involvement in teaching ESL classes at the Seattle Public Library emerged in 2003 when non-native English speakers asked for ESL classes at the library. Emily Wong, then manager of the ESL Department, approached LCS to begin classes at the Central Library to supplement Talk Time programs.

In this organization built on one-to-one tutoring, we must ask: How does this program support the mission of the Literacy Council of Seattle?

Our library classes help the adult students become familiar with the Library system and learn to use it for access to books, computers, and language learning software. They help learners increase their skills so they can get into college English classes or a Citizenship class. Very low Beginners are assigned a one-to-one tutor to give them a good start learning English.

In addition, the Partnership with the Seattle Public Library provides a venue for LCS to serve over 100 adult students in or near where they live. The program has increased the number of students we serve from 110 to 225.

We owe the success of these classes to our wonderful group of experienced classroom tutors (see page 4) and to the efforts of Sara Elefson, LCS Program Coordinator. She recruits the instructors, works out the days and times with the librarians, published the flyers, negotiates changes, enters the attendance date, and generally dances as fast as she can to pull it all together. "Wow", Sara, and "thanks" instructors.

Sharon S. Victor, President