CA & National Literacy Calendar: August 2010

California Literacy Calendar: August 2010

SCLLN

Literacy & Library Events & Conferences
- local, California and National -

visit

Southern California Library Literacy Networkfor more information

Updates of Tutor Training Workshops Scrolling in Left Frame

Local and California Literacy Events: August 2010

Aug 2: Intro Orton-Gillingham = Cyberspace
Aug 3: Sign 'Right to Literacy' Scroll @ 3pm-7pm = San Bernardino Library
Aug 3: LD Parent Support Group @ 7pm - Culver City
Aug 4: LD Parent Support Group @ 7pm – Sherman Oaks
Aug 5-8: Steinbeck Festival – Salinas CA
Aug 7: Autism Sensory Films CATS & DOGS @10am – in local AMC theaters
Aug 14: LD Adult Support Group @10am – Tarzana
Aug 21: Black Book Expo – LA

National Literacy Events: August 2010

Aug 4-6: Distance Teaching & Learning – Madison WI
Aug 7: Autism Sensory Films CATS & DOGS @10am – AMC theaters by state

Monrovia Library - Learner Poetry

Learner Poetry
Monrovia Literacy Blog
July 26, 2010

One of our learners wrote this poem, which I thought was lovely. Please feel free to post any comments about it or comments for me to pass on to the learner !

A girl dreamed of going to a foreign country,
she imagined she would be free from having her parents lecture her on her behavior.
one day, her dream came true. she felt very happy and free,
but she felt very lonely all day long.
she lived with her family in her dream at night.
it was just a dream and when she woke up in the morning,
she realized that leaving home needed bravery.

Public libraries must be public, not profit machines

Public libraries must be public, not profit machines
Record: July 24, 2010 by Colleen Foster

What is a public library?

One "maintained for/used by the people of a community" or an entity "capitalized in shares of stock that can be traded on the open market?" A fair question since the San Joaquin County Board of Supervisors recently released a Request for Proposals from private companies to manage operations of the Stockton-San Joaquin County Public Library.

The goal of a public library is to improve quality of life by advancing literacy and a lifelong love of learning. The goal of a private company is to create profit for its owners or shareholders. In my opinion, these goals are fundamentally incompatible.

The board appears to be searching for a way to maintain quality service in our library system while saving money in these difficult times. The premise behind library privatization seems to be that the library is so inefficient in its operations that a company with a profit motive will be able to do more with less.

As the former director of the library, I know the many cost saving measures long in place at the library: cooperative cataloging of popular material, preprocessing of such material, major discounts from book jobbers, and shared cost of delivery with a multicounty library cooperative. There is not much room for increasing library efficiency without sacrificing quality of service.

The most substantial cost associated with running our library is staff salaries and benefits. Privatization is therefore almost certain to reduce the quality and quantity of our library staff. Librarians and library staff are the key to the high quality service upon which San Joaquin County residents have come to rely.

Libraries are not profitable, and they're not supposed to be. That's why we support them with our tax dollars - to ensure that they continue to make the betterment of all their main priority. America's public libraries are a cornerstone of our democracy and play an important part in our nation's commitment to public education.

6 6 6 6 6 6 6

And why should any of our public monies, let alone 8 percent of the library's budget, go to the profits of a private company with a home office in Maryland? READ MORE !

Colleen Foster was the director of the Stockton-San Joaquin County Public Library from 1994-2000.

San Diego Co Library - Amanda Rocks !

Amanda Rocks !
Learn Alive: May-Jun 2010 by Kevin Vigil, Library Associate

When I first stepped into the El Cajon Branch Library nearly fiveyears ago, I couldn’t help but notice the sparseness of the literacy center. There were no computers on the desks, a large wall devoid of color, and only one bookshelf with a handful of materials. The literacy office was a clear reflection of the nearly empty center adjoining it, except for one computer, a few file boxes scattered on the floor, and Amanda Schukle.

Amanda was LEARN’s first literacy coordinator and the sole staff member of the month-old program. As an outreach librarian, Amanda was hand- picked to take the reins of the fledgling LEARN program, which previously had been managed by the San Diego Public Library. Although many tutor/learner pairs had participated in the SDPL-run program, only twelve tutor/learner pairs successfully transitioned to LEARN. Amanda was tasked with getting more adult learners and tutors involved while attempting to develop an effective literacy program.

Initially, she faced a number of challenges. Some of these challenges included how best to provide services throughout the San Diego County Library’s large geographic area, developing effective volunteer recruitment strategies, figuring out a comprehensive training model for tutors, and building a literacy program that was fully integrated with the library. Periodically, communicating the significance of LEARN proved to be difficult , but Amanda consistently informed people of the program’s unique value.

Along with these challenges came successes. “The first being the very existence of LEARN,” stated Amanda. “The program was and continues to be a conduit for people to create their own success.” As adult learners improved their literacy skills, they began to accomplish long established goals, such as obtaining a driver’s license, a promotion at work, or reading a story to their children. These successes reaffirmed Amanda’s belief that “literacy programs go hand-in-hand with libraries… the library is for everybody.”

LEARN had grown leaps and bounds by the time Amanda was promoted to the department of Collection Development at library headquarters. More staff members came on board, and a second literacy center was added at the Vista Branch Library. Adult literacy and ESL services expanded as the number of tutor/learner pairs steadily increased throughout the county.

Nearly five years later, LEARN continues to grow, as does Amanda. Recently, Amanda announced that she accepted a position as one of three library services managers in the San Mateo County Library system in Northern California. Although she will be taking many memories of the San Diego County Library with her, LEARN holds a special place in her heart. “I’m so proud of how far [LEARN has] come” stated Amanda. “It’s nice to see the impact the program has made on people.” With over 500 active adults taking advantage of literacy services in the San Diego County Library, it’s nice to see the impact Amanda has made on LEARN.

Congratulations and the best of luck Amanda! You will be missed!