NORWICH – With approximately 4,000 adults functionally illiterate in Chenango County, Literacy Volunteers of Chenango County (LVCC) is working hard to affect change amongst individuals and the community.
According to the LVCC website, 42 percent of adults in the county have some type of challenge with writing, basic reading and math. LVCC's mission is to help adults by improving these skill sets so they can become more active and successful leaders in their families and communities. Clear connections between illiteracy and poverty have been made, which is why there is such a focus on helping adults in the county gain these very important and basic skills.
“It's individuals at or below the poverty level and they have so many barriers,” said JoAnn Kishbaugh, Program Director of LVCC, when asked about the demographics of LVCC's students. “There needs to be a safe place for them to come to. The lack of literacy impacts every aspect of their life.”
Connie Dalrymple, Director of Guernsey Memorial Library, shared this viewpoint. “Literacy is one of the number one predictors of employment and income,” she said. She went on to explain that the library encourages literacy through computer literacy classes, reading hours for children and by offering materials at different reading levels.
ProLiteracy, a national organization of which LVCC is an affiliate, explained the positive impact on adults once these skills are gained.
“They can find and keep jobs, enjoy better health, and educate their own children,” states the ProLiteracy website. “Their new skills enable them to dream big, do more, and move forward. And that means society can move forward, too.”
Many LVCC students are either self-referrals or are referred by community partners such as CDO Workforce, Office of Employment and Training, DCMO BOCES Adult Education/GED Program, and other programs.
“We primarily serve anyone 16 or over with literacy levels below the eighth grade level,” said Kishbaugh. “We help with reading, math and writing skills.”
LVCC also provides help with pre-GED classes, computer literacy and English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL). LVCC provides a variety of one-on-one and group programs that are free to students and led by trained volunteers.
Kishbaugh continued by explaining that while the volunteers do a great deal to help students, the students are the ones who must put forth the work in order to achieve success.
Morgan Langille, at age 18, is one such student who is striving to meet her goals.
Determined to go to school and become a nurse, Langille is very self-motivated and is working hard to increase her TABE (Test of Adult Basic Education) score so she can continue on to GED classes.
“I love it. It helps people to get their GED and learn more that they don't know,” said Langille when asked how she felt about the class.
Carolyn McMaster is Langille's tutor and leads the MP3 (Motivating Positive Performance & Productivity) program. “She (Langille) has picked up everything quickly,” said McMaster. When asked about the class dynamic, she said, “It's wonderful because students are supportive of each other. The whole point is for everyone to gain from each other.”
Last year, LVCC saw four students become fully employed, four of whom became employed at least half-time, six retained their jobs and five received their GEDs. This is just a sampling of numerous success stories resulting from participation in LVCC.
While Kishbaugh is very proud of the LVCC program, she emphasized the importance of community effort. “We need to partner. We can't be in a vacuum. We need to use resources together.”
LVCC is a program under the Opportunities for Chenango umbrella and is funded by the United Way and by New York State Education Department. It also rely on fundraising and donations in order to support the needs of its students.
For more information about LVCC programs or to donate, visit ofcinc.org/adlit/lva.php or call 334-7114.