City, Literacy Council team up for programSanta Maria Times: Feb 11, 2007 by Malia Spencer
The city of Santa Maria and the Central Coast Literacy Council are partnering to create an adult literacy program.Officials hope to target English-speaking adults who are unable to read and write at proficient levels with a literacy center that will be part of the new Santa Maria Library.Currently, the literacy council offers one-on-one tutoring for about eight adults, said Isa Ponce executive director for the Central Coast Literacy Council
The organization's main focus has been teaching English as a second language, Ponce said. For that program, the agency has about 150 students at various locations throughout Santa Barbara County.To establish an adult literacy center at the new library, the city applied for funds from the California Library Literacy Service. Santa Maria was one of three facilities statewide to receive such funds, according to city staff.For each of the next three years, Santa Maria will receive $34,500, and in subsequent years the funding will be based on a formula.As long as the program is viable, the funding will be ongoing, said Santa Maria Librarian Francisco Pinneli.
“What this grant will do ... is target adults, native-born English speakers, who fall between the cracks and are not reading at a sixth-grade level,” he said. “It makes it difficult for them to function fully within society.”By offering literacy training to those who need it, lives can be dramatically changed, Pinneli added.
Since funds for the program are available now and library construction completion is more than a year away, the service will be offered at the Central Coast Literacy Council offices, 521 E. Chapel St., Suite B.Eventually, the Chapel Street location will be closed and the literacy council will move into a 449-square-foot center within the library.
The literacy council has been providing services to Santa Maria since 1983. It has 42 volunteers working out of six centers in Santa Maria, one in Guadalupe and one in Solvang.
Ponce noted that the organization needs volunteers, and two training workshops are being held in March for anyone who is interested.
Training is slated for March 17 and 24 from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the United Way, 1660 S. Broadway.For more information about the Central Coast Literacy Council, call 922-9200.
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