|
WEST WINDSOR - Literacy Volunteers of Salem and Cumberland Counties, a program of Gateway Community Action Partnership, received the 2013 Alice M. Leppert Award for Outstanding Affiliate Achievement for the second time in three years Saturday at the Literacy Volunteers of NJ annual conference.
Literacy Volunteers of Salem and Cumberland Counties received the award for utilizing partnerships, creative thinking, and dedication of staff and volunteer tutors to meet a growing demand for ESL services in Salem County. The presentation was made at the 2013 Literacy for Life Conference at the Conference Center at Mercer.
Working with PathStone, Literacy Volunteers of Salem and Cumberland Counties created a Beginning English class at Gateway’s Salem Family Success Center to accommodate an influx of ESL learners. ESL students would learn enough English to prepare them to work with a tutor once they were matched.
When the Beginning English class started in August 2012, the plan was to operate it for four weeks. But the program became so popular with learners it remains in place today and will continue.
“The mission of Gateway Community Action Partnership is to provide services that improve the quality of life and promote self-sufficiency, and our literacy program advances that mission in Salem and Cumberland counties,” said Albert B. Kelly, Gateway’s President and CEO. “I am so proud that we are the Literacy Volunteers of NJ’s affiliate of the year once again, and I congratulate the staff and our volunteer tutors for this award.”
Literacy Volunteers of Salem and Cumberland Counties and PathStone shared teaching duties for the Beginning English class and recruitment of volunteers. Ten tutors have been trained to lead the classes. Literacy Volunteers of Salem and Cumberland Counties hopes to expand the program to Cumberland County by forming partnerships with other existing ESL programs.
Literacy Volunteers of Salem and Cumberland Counties held four tutor training sessions in Salem and Cumberland counties in 2012 and added 25 new tutors to its ranks of more than 60 active volunteers. The program also provided services to more than 60 new learners in ESL and basic literacy.
For more information on Literacy Volunteers of Salem and Cumberland Counties, contact program coordinator Laura Weber at 856-497-6645.
Caption: Literacy Volunteers of Salem and Cumberland Counties, a program of Gateway Community Action Partnership, received an award for being the “outstanding affiliate” at the Literacy Volunteers of NJ’s annual conference on April 20. From left: Ed Hilt, literacy advisory board member/Gateway; Mary Ellen Clark, NJ Department of Labor and Workforce Development; Yvonne Crouch, volunteer tutor; Laura Weber, literacy program coordinator; Judy Hunt, volunteer tutor; Jessica Tomkins, Literacy Volunteers of NJ Executive Director; Mike Cudemo, literacy advisory board member/Gateway Vice President of Planning.
|
|
