About the Council
The Literacy Council - Walker County Chapter focuses on decreasing the illiteracy rate in Walker County by offering adult tutoring, children's programs, and young adult activities.
According to the National Center for Education Statistics, approximately 16% of adults in the State of Alabama are functionally illiterate. That means there are more than 92,000 adults in Central Alabama who do not read well enough to earn a GED or fill out a job application or understand the label on a prescription bottle. Of that number, 7,632 live in Walker County. Illiteracy is a personal tragedy for the person as well as a public dilemma for our community. Many of our state’s ills can be directly attributed to our low levels of education. Of those 92,000 functionally illiterate adults, some are working in menial jobs, some are in prisons or homeless shelters, and many more are living on welfare. If we could teach these adults to read, what changes would we see in their lives? What changes would we see in our communities?
In 1991, the United Way of Central Alabama, the Birmingham Chamber of Commerce, and the Junior League of Birmingham identified a need to support those battling adult illiteracy in Central Alabama. Together, they formed The Literacy Council.
According to the National Center for Education Statistics, approximately 16% of adults in the State of Alabama are functionally illiterate. That means there are more than 92,000 adults in Central Alabama who do not read well enough to earn a GED or fill out a job application or understand the label on a prescription bottle. Of that number, 7,632 live in Walker County. Illiteracy is a personal tragedy for the person as well as a public dilemma for our community. Many of our state’s ills can be directly attributed to our low levels of education. Of those 92,000 functionally illiterate adults, some are working in menial jobs, some are in prisons or homeless shelters, and many more are living on welfare. If we could teach these adults to read, what changes would we see in their lives? What changes would we see in our communities?
In 1991, the United Way of Central Alabama, the Birmingham Chamber of Commerce, and the Junior League of Birmingham identified a need to support those battling adult illiteracy in Central Alabama. Together, they formed The Literacy Council.
Vision |
Mission |
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A community in which each person achieves his or her maximum literacy potential.
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To develop, strengthen and support Basic Literacy and English for Speakers of Other Languages services in Blount, Jefferson, St. Clair, Shelby, and Walker Counties.
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Programs offered by the literacy council
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The Literacy Council-Walker County Chapter Junior Board consists of 10 young people from across the county who are dedicated to upholding & furthering the mission of The Literacy Council. They will serve as volunteers for a variety of community programs.
Tutor training is free and open to anyone over 18 years of age. It teaches potential tutors how to test and tutor adult learners. TLC provides all the materials necessary for the training and tutoring. After a person finishes the training, he/she will be certified and will not have to take the training again. Most tutors meet with their learners just once a week for an hour at a time, so becoming a tutor is not a time-consuming process. Plus, it’s a great way to volunteer and be a part of a community. The Walker County Reads program places volunteers in schools so elementary-aged children have someone to practice their reading skills with or to get additional help with their skills if needed. The Teens Assisting Teens to Succeed (TATtS) program offers in-school tutoring to high school students in order to improve their reading and comprehension skills. This program offers young adults the opportunity to become involved with The Literacy Council and promotes volunteering with the Council after they graduate high school. |
In an effort to increase and encourage volunteers, a Tutor Coalition has been created so tutors will have another level of support while they assist their learners.
Book Buddies is a popular in-school book club for fifth graders, with voluntary library visits for students participating tripling in previous years. The Just One You (J.O.Y.) program is a reading and writing program geared toward sixth graders that allows the students to write and illustrate their own books. The premise of the program is to encourage the students to express their creativity while learning the value of reading. The Book Worms program is a reading program for second graders that tries to entice children who are not readers to become readers. The Narrative is an essay contest in which students in second grade in Walker County and Jasper City schools compete with essays about their interest in reading. |
How you can help
The most important way you can assist in the fight against illiteracy is by volunteering to be an adult learning tutor (information below). You can also volunteer to read to children or have them read to you as a part of our Walker County Reads program.
Donations of new or gently-used books and funds are also greatly appreciated. All of the donations The Literacy Council-Walker County Chapter receives stay in this community.
Donations of new or gently-used books and funds are also greatly appreciated. All of the donations The Literacy Council-Walker County Chapter receives stay in this community.
Contact us
The coordinator of the Walker County Chapter of the Literacy Council is Jennifer Smith. She can be reached via email at [email protected] or by calling the Literacy Council office at 205.238.7486.